Umbrella Man
by Xonze
Summary: Beckett and Castle investigate a murder where someone was buried alive and while working the case they met a man who isn't what he seems.
1. I Hate This Time of Year

**A/N:** I wrote this for Halloween 2010. I'm going to be posting the sequel that I wrote for this year on here, but it refers back to this story some so it's best to have read this first.

Anyway, this is not a 'super-duper happy' story. I wrote it as my try at horror, a genre that I enjoy. This has been posted else where, and most people liked it, but I'm warning you that some chapters may not appeal to everyone. I want to ask you to stick with me if a chapter kind of puts you off, I promise the ending is worth it. It doesn't get very gory, no worse than a Castle episode, I think.

If you read this before on another site, consider this Umbrella Man 1.5. This an edited, revised copy. Some things have been removed or reworded for the sake of this site so as I wouldn't get banned (nothing major has been removed though as I'm not being overly cautious *crosses fingers*).

So, if you haven't realized it thus far, this is rated M. Not even joking. But enjoy!

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><p>Chapter 1<p>

**I Hate This Time of Year**

"I hate this time of year." Kate said as she and Rick stood shivering in the early misty evening of October 29th. A wind rustled the dead leaves on the ground and frisked them both with a chilly touch, made goose-bumps on their skin.

Rick stared into the depth of a freshly dug grave. It harkened back to a year ago when they found the vampire kid with a stake through his chest. This was different though, this was just weird.

"Maybe it's not what we think." Rick said and Kate turned so that she could see him from the corner of her eyes. She shivered visibly in the red winter coat she wore. Her hair had began to escape the tight bun she had put it in, strands danced with the wind around her face.

"Castle, it's a dead guy in a coffin that's been crushed."

"And? Maybe we're just dealing with a couple grave robbing kids. They might just be looking for some real bones for Halloween." He said, trying not to sound too hopeful. He was pretty sure it wasn't kids, but it'd be a nice change of pace for it not to be a murder. Kate was already stressed out enough as it was with all the cases that rushed in during October. He knew that even him hanging around wasn't much solace at the moment.

"I wish we were," Lanie said from inside the hole. She looked up, her face smudged with dirt, and gave a frown to the two of them. "You see that over there." She pointed above ground and Kate and Rick turned their heads, following her finger.

At the edge, by the fake gravestone, was a long stick that had been shoved into the ground. Hanging from it was one of the smallest bells that Rick had ever seen. A thin piece of string dangling from it and Rick felt his stomach drop. "Aw crap."

"My thoughts exactly." Lanie said and Kate turned to Rick, her face drawn up in confusion.

"So, it's a bell. What about it?" She said, shivering again. He wondered how many bones she'd break if he took off his jacket and gave it to her. It might have been worth it, but then he'd be freezing with broken bones.

"Before 'modern' medicine," Rick began, walking over to the stick with the bell, "it wasn't always easy to tell when someone was really dead. They didn't do the whole draining of blood and stuffing organs in a bag and sewing them back into the stomach thing that we do nowadays, so it was possible someone might not be dead and placed in a grave."

"Buried alive?" Kate asked, her lips went thin and her nose scrunched up slightly.

"It happened a lot more than you think." He said as he bent down. "They'd take a string and tie it to the supposedly deceased person's wrist and then some poor sap would have to sit his butt in the graveyard all night, listening for this-" He reached out and tapped the bell causing it to ring in the cool silence of the night. A couple of the CSU guys looked up at the sound. "It's where the term 'Graveyard Shift' came from." He stood and rounded the pit to stand next to her.

"You're certainly a wealth of information... all of it morbid." Kate said and her mouth twitched slightly upward.

"You know as much morbid stuff as I do, if not more, Detective." Rick dropped his hands into the pockets of his coat again. He turned his gaze back to the wooden box that Lanie was carefully excavating. The lid had been broken in three pieces. The planks snapped inward as if a great amount of weight had been put on it. He guessed it happened when their murderer filled the hole back in. The question was: why didn't he finish? And why the setup?

"Lanie, was he alive when he was put in there?" Kate asked and bent down, her arm across her thigh and her hand hung free.

"I won't know until I get him out of he-" There was a sudden crack and a piece of the lid came up in Lanie's hand. She looked at it, flipped it over. There were streaks of blood lining the inside and splinters of wood stuck out as if something had clawed at it. "Going on this, I'd say he was."

"Christ." Kate said as she turned away and looked down to the grass. She took a deep breath, her shoulders rose and fell and then she looked back. "All right," she stood and turned around, searched out the darkness. "Ryan! Esposito!"

Rick turned to watch the two men come toward them, shadows in the fog for a moment before it peeled away to show both men wearing long coats and their faces red from cold. They stopped in front of Kate, rubbing their hands together.

"What's up?" Esposito asked and blew into his hands.

"Get CSU to canvas the area, I want to make sure that we don't have any more of these around here. The grave stone was fake so if there are others they'll probably be the same."

"On it." They both said and began to leave. Kate reached out and stopped Esposito with a hand to his shoulder.

"I need you to talk to the guy that found the grave, see if he'll be welling to come in and talk to us."

"Sure, what are you going to do?"

"Talk to the grounds keeper, he might have saw our killer or heard something." Kate said and Esposito nodded before he took off after Ryan. She turned back around and Rick watched her eyes find his. She tilted her head slightly. "What?"

"Nothing," Rick said with a shrug and fell into step beside her as she headed pass the grave. "So have you decided yet?"

The air had grown colder the longer they stayed and the night wind began to rattle the trees, a dangerous sound that reminded Rick of a ghosts and demons. He turned his eyes up at the branches as they rocked into each other; long skeletal fingers moving to some unheard music. He shivered and turned back to Kate. She pushed a loose strand of hair back behind her ears as she seemed to search him with muted green eyes.

"Decided what?"

"If you're coming to my halloween party. You never did RSVP." Rick said holding her stare as they walked, and almost tripped over a headstone.

"I don't know, Castle. Maybe."

"Come on, you have to. Remember how much fun it was last year?"

"I remember you, Ryan, Lanie and Esposito getting drunk and you all started singing the Ghostbuster's theme song." Kate said and Rick went searching through his memory, smiled when he found it.

"And if I remember correctly you joined in halfway through."

"I don't know what you're talking about," Kate said, but Rick could see the small smirk she fought. "Anyway, no I haven't decided yet."

"It's two days away, and you still need a costume."

Kate sighed and shook her head as she stopped in front of the grounds keeper's office. It was barely a shed. The roof lost most of its shingles and the door's paint had begun to peel, a pile of chips already on the steps. The wood siding looked like it had started to rot and white mold scattered the planks. A single shutter on a window to the left of the door creaked in the wind. Rick couldn't help but wonder if the place was haunted. It had been built in a graveyard...

"You won't let this drop, will you?"

"No, which you should know by now." Rick said and reached out, knocked on the door before she could. She glared at him. "See, had you said yes I wouldn't have done that."

"You keep it up and you'll be the next one they find buried with a bell tied to their wrist." She turned back to the door as it creaked open in a very horror movie way. Behind it stood an elderly man with a white beard that reached down to his bulging belly. His eyes were set deep inside his head, black marbles peaking out from under wrinkled lids. His mouth seemed to be locked in an eternal frown but it lightened just a bit when he saw Kate.

"What'ca want?" He didn't open the door all the way, and Rick was pretty sure he was bracing it with his foot. The man raised a bushy white eyebrow at Kate and then at Rick when neither said anything for a moment.

"Hi, I'm detective Kate Beckett with the NYPD," she said as she flashed her badge and the man studied it for a moment before turning to look at Rick. "This is Richard Castle. He's a... consultant."

The old man nodded and opened the door a little wider. Rick could now see inside, but there wasn't much to be seen. Two oil lanterns hung on the wall from tiny wooden pegs near the ceiling. One was on, casting a gloomy, flickering yellow over the room. Beside them sat a chair with a large wooden cable spool that acted as a side table. There were a number of empty beer bottles on the spool, the lantern's light glinting off the glass.

"So, I'd repeat what I asked, what'ca want?"

"I was hoping I could ask you a few questions pertaining to the man we found buried alive." Kate said and pulled out her small notepad from her jacket pocket.

"Which man? There be a lot of men out in the 'yard." The man grinned at his joke and it looked almost grotesque on his face. Rick couldn't help but stare.

"Well, sir, I'm talking about the grave that was found half filled in with a man inside it that was alive a few hours ago."

"Oh," the man reached up and stroked his beard and Rick was reminded of Gandalf from Lord of the Rings for a moment. "Right, that one."

"Yes," Kate said, "that one. Have you seen anything strange around here lately?"

"Lady, it's a graveyard I see all sort of strange things out here."

"Ghosts?" Ricked asked before he could stop himself. Kate looked over, her mouth going thin and her eyes to slits. It was a look that asked 'Really?' but Rick ignored it.

"Aye, ghosts, spirits, whatever you may like to be calling it." The man raised his hand as if to sweep away the words. "When you spend late nights out on the 'yard you sometimes see things."

"See anything around where we found out vic?" Kate said.

The man went back to stroking his beard as he limped away from the door, his feet heavy on the wooden floor. He stumbled over to his chair and sat down without a word. Kate moved forward, pushed the door open and squinted at the squeak it made. Rick followed her in and they came a stop a few feet inside. A sharp breath escaped Rick as the heat in the building washed over him. A few minutes here and he'd be able to feel his toes again.

"Sir?" Kate asked, taking a step forward. The old man looked up at her for a moment, his eyes bore through them both and then they dropped to a beer bottle that was half full. He reached out and picked it up, took a swig from it before he dropped it back to its place.

"Two nights ago," the man said, sighing after he swallowed the beer. "I was out making me rounds like normal and I comes across this guy just standing there, staring at an empty plot. He had an umbrella in hand, used it almost like a cane. I thought it odd as there weren't a cloud in the sky above him.

"He wore a long coat and one of them old type hates, fedora I think. He didn't even seem to notice me 'til I called out to him. He turned slowly, like a machine or a doll with not so many joints. He gave me a smile, or at least that was what it looked like in the moon light." The man ran a hand through his mane of grey hair, dandruff flakes fell to his shoulder. "He looked to me for a long moment before he spoke. It was slow, like he was tasting each word as it left his mouth."

Kate looked over to Rick with a raised eyebrow and a half smile. She obviously thought the old guy was nuts, but Rick wasn't so sure. Even if the guy was though, Rick wasn't leaving until he got the whole story. "Go on," Rick said and pulled out his own notebook.

"Well, it was after hours so I say to him-I said that he couldn't be there and I asked what he was doing. He shrugged and turned back around, lifted the umbrella he was holding. I asked him again and it was like he talked in me head or something. He said: 'Just admiring the landscaping. This has a nice view, and seems almost perfect.' Then he just took the umbrella, made a large X in the ground with the end.

"I thought he was just some crazy who was shopping early or somethin'. He turned around and looked at me and I asked what he meant by perfect. He said with the same smile: 'Perfect for the needs of a friend. He'll be in need of such a place in his near future. Please do keep up the good work, it's nice to see someone take pride in what they do. Goodnight.' Then he started to walk away, opened the umbrella as he went and held it on his shoulder. I swears, this may sound crazy but he just 'ucking disappeared. Into the mist he went and he was gone. I almost had me a heart attack I think." The man reached over for his beer and took another swig. "I wouldn't be too surprised if he be Death himself."

"Right..." Kate said closing the notepad and dropping it into her pocket. "Thank you for your time, if we have any more questions we'll contact you."

"Just be careful out there, all right? I don't want to have to dig more graves this week." The man said and Kate reached out, gripped Rick's arm and pulled him along with her.

"Thanks, we will." She said, closing the door behind her and walked down off the stoop.

"Well, I'm pretty well creeped out now." Rick said, and Kate looked at him with disbelieving eyes. "What?"

"Don't tell me you actually believed that crap?"

"Didn't say that, but he's got the telling of a scary story down pat. I think I may just have nightmares of Umbrella Man." Rick said as they came upon the grave again. The box was now outside of the pit, the lid completely torn off and Lanie and two others were just reaching down to put the coffin up on a gurney.

Once it was in the back of her van she turned to them. "So how'd it go?"

"He managed to freak Castle out." Kate said, thrusting a finger toward Rick who shrugged.

"The guy is a genius when it comes to telling scary stories. You ever hear about a guy hanging around graveyards wearing a fedora and carrying an umbrella." Rick asked and Kate rolled her eyes.

"No, sorry can't say I have. Sounds interesting though. I'm always down for a scary story."

"I'll tell you tomorrow then." Rick said grinning.

"Right, back in the real world," Kate said and snapped her fingers. "Was there any ID on the guy?"

"Not in his jeans, but I'll take a closer look when I get him back to the morgue. Just be patient, honey, I'll call you as soon as I have something. Okay?"

"Yeah, thanks, Lanie." Kate said and Lanie gave a nod before heading back to the van, leaving the duo standing beside the grave. The moon was a little above their heads now, shining a bluish light over them and the mist that swirled around their feet. It reminded Rick of a graveyard in some movie but he couldn't place which one.

He shivered as he watched his breath float away on an unseen wind, like he had just taken a long drag from a cigarette. He looked over to Kate as he tried to rub warmth into his arms. She was tapping a nail against her frowning bottom lip as she watched the van disappear into the fog.

"Should we go in there and take a look around?" Rick asked pointing to the grave after a few moments. There was a howl off in the distance and he jerked in slight surprise. He really was on edge from the story, but why? He had heard millions of scary stories and watched tons of horror movies, why did the umbrella guy freak him out?

"No, Lanie would have found anything that was there. Let's go back to the station and see if Esposito could get the guy who found the grave to come in."

"You sure? Shouldn't we at least take the bell along?"

"CSU will get it." Kate said and waved him off before heading out of the graveyard and toward her car. Rick went after her just before she disappeared behind a screen of fog. There was another howl off in the distance and Rick's imagination went into overdrive picturing werewolves out in the night, hunting the darkness. A Werewolf in NewYork.

He rushed forward when he saw her car and he heard her give a small laugh as he stopped on the passenger side, waiting for her to unlock the door. "What's wrong, Castle? Got the jitters already?"

"A little bit... could you open the door?" He said, turning his head to look behind him as he thought he heard something walking toward him from down the trail. Damn the old guy and his story.

"You're such a baby," she said and opened her side and sat down. She looked out the window and Rick stared at her through it. She grinned and started the car.

"Not funny, Beckett. Come on open the door. Please?" The grin softened slightly and Rick guessed it was because she realized that he was pretty well freaked out at the moment. The curse of having a good imagination was that it sometimes worked against you.

She reached across the passenger seat and popped the lock. Rick got in quickly, slamming the door and shivered in his jacket. He looked over to Kate, scowling as he rubbed his hands together. She didn't turn his way.

She shifted the car into drive and headed out of the graveyard, following the narrow paths.

Rick turned to look out the window as the gravestones fluttered by. He wasn't usually creeped out, but being a mystery writer he was more in tune with death than most. He'd faced his own mortality more than once, and places like this were starting to have an affect on him, as he guessed it probably did with Kate, Ryan, and Esposito. He loved halloween, but he seemed to be thinking about death more often nowadays.


	2. Interrogation Room One

Chapter 2

**Interrogation Room One**

The precinct was plastered with Halloween decorations. No one really seemed to know who did it every October as the entire squad acted like they all hated this time of year as much as Kate did. Someone did it though and they went all out. Cobwebs hung from the ceiling and from corners. Skeletons that looked to be dancing hung in the windows and each desk had its own lit pumpkin. Kate had pushed the one on her desk to the very edge and Rick assumed she was hoping someone would knock it off.

Sure, October meant more work for the police, but he never really understood Kate's hate for this time of the year. The other cops complained and whined, but in the end they actually seemed to like Halloween, talking about costumes and taking their kids trick or treating. Kate didn't talk about things like that unless Rick pulled it out of her and even then she usually kept to herself.

He followed her to her desk and once there he sat down at his normal chair, ducking under the hanging string of paper ghosts that went from beam to beam. Kate had brushed them aside and nearly tore them from the ceiling. "So, decided yet?"

She sighed. "I'll come, all right? Will that get you off my case?"

"Yes. Don't forget you need a costume, and I mean an actual costume, not that thing you wore last year." Rick said pointing over and she looked down at his finger for a moment and he dropped it.

"Sure," she said, a corner of her mouth lifting up. "I'll see what I can put together."

"If you need ideas I'd be glad to suggest some."

"No thanks, Castle."

"Hey." They both looked up when Ryan came to her desk. He placed a hand on the front of it and bent down. He had a folder under his right arm which looked to be holding only a single paper. "We got that guy you wanted, he's waiting in one."

Kate smiled and stood up quickly, grabbing the folder from under Ryan's arm as she rounded her desk. Ryan place a hand to his armpit as if he had been cut and hissed through his teeth. Rick smirked and jumped up as he was about to be left behind and hurried to catch up.

He reached her just as she opened the door and Rick stopped in his tracks at the threshold.

Standing in the corner was a thin man dressed in a suit, all black with a white shirt and red tie. The tie was held in place by a golden clip that shimmered in the bright light of the room. He had a hat in his hand that he'd been tapping against his leg, but stopped when Kate entered the room. Turning, the man grinned, his stark white hair wild on his head; his eyes were set deep in his skull, surrounded by wrinkles. Rick was suddenly reminded of the Doc from Back to the Future, only a creepier looking version.

The man dropped something at his side and it jumped on the tile, the handle going back into his hand. He held it up then, the smile widening.

It was an umbrella, Rick realized. He gulped hard and took a deep breath. Kate didn't seem to be affected by it at all.

"Mr-" Kate began and opened the folder as she crossed the room to the table. She stopped just before she sat down. "Huh, there's no name here."

"Ah, yes, that would be because I didn't give your detectives one."

"Okay, can you give me your name?"

"No." The man said and Kate furrowed her brow in confusion. Rick was still standing at the threshold, trying to get his legs to work.

"So what do I call you?"

"Anything you like, Detective." The man said and turned his stormy hazel eyes to Rick. "Mr. Castle, please, do join us." He motioned with a hand to the chair on the other side of the table.

Rick jumped slightly at his name and Kate looked over. He felt like a wimp at the moment, but he couldn't help it, something about the guy just felt horribly off. It was the story, he told himself as he forced his legs to walk and he sat down at the table. It was the story that was making him feel this way. So the guy wore a hat and had an umbrella, what was the big deal? Well, other than it hadn't rained for two weeks and there was still none in the forecast.

"Okay, can you take a seat... sir?" Kate asked, still standing and looking at the folder. The man gave a nod, his lips pursed in a small smile and sat down across from Rick. His face was thin and bristled with white stubble which he scratched at once he was comfortably seated. Rick couldn't take his eyes off the man.

"So you're the one that found our vic tonight, correct?"

"More or less." He said, his umbrella tip tapping on the tile after he spoke. He seemed almost amused by it all.

"What do you mean?"

The man shrugged. "Well, yes, I did call you about the person in the grave but I wouldn't say I found him exactly."

"Are you saying you put him there?" Kate bent down and placed both hands on the table, staring the man down. The man didn't even flinch.

"No," he said. His voice was smooth but the words slightly jittered, like that of a man that spoke english as a second language but had learned it at a young age. "Sorry, Katherine, but I'm not the one you're looking for."

"Did he just pull a Jedi mind trick?" Rick asked.

"Castle." Kate looked over to Rick for a moment, the glance shutting him up. She turned back. "Look, I have a man dead, you found him, or at least that's what you told the detective at the scene. I need information and you have it. So let's talk."

"Of course, Katherine, but I've told you all I know..." He paused, his eyes glancing to the ceiling for a moment and a small smile curved his lips. "Well, that's not completely true. I've told you most of what I know at least regarding this case."

"Then tell me the rest."

"Perhaps at a later date." He said and looked down at his wrist, there was a large faced watch there and he frowned at it. "It seems I'm running late for another appointment. May I go?"

His calmness was starting to get to Rick and he could see it was pissing Kate off. Referring to her as Katherine might be partly why, but most of it was just the guy was creepy and he was dancing around with the both of them.

"Look, either tell me what you know, or I'm going to put you in holding with a bunch of college kids who are quite drunk at the moment and I don't think they'd mind having a punching bag for a bit."

The man smiled and chuckled. He reached in his jacket and pulled out a packet of cigarettes.

"No smoking." Kate said, her voice hard and viscous. The man gave another small chuckle and placed them back in his jacket.

"Sorry, I like to have one when I talk. Anyway, what exactly is it that you want to know?"

"How you found the man."

"Ah, well, that is an interesting story, I think. I knew he'd be there, just as I always know when someone is going to be er... moving on, but this was special. This one I had to see for myself, but I was a couple of days early." He shrugged and patted the pack of cigarettes in his pocket with his right hand. "I'm usually not that far off, mind you, but I am getting on in years."

"So you were the man the grounds keeper saw a few nights ago." Rick said and a chill ran the length of his spine.

"Oh, Jimmy? Yes, he saw me, good fellow that man. Too bad about his heart, I'm sure I'll be seeing him again before that takes him." The man tapped his umbrella again and Rick flinched. "Now, about the boy in the coffin, there isn't much more I can tell you. I knew he'd be at that spot, just not at the exact time, or that'd he'd buried which I found out when I checked this evening in hopes of seeing him. Funny that, I hadn't seen a bell at a grave in many years."

"So you know who killed him?"

The man sighed, chuckling once again. "That would be telling, wheres the fun in that, Katherine? You and Richard always do so well when you don't have all the facts."

"And not telling would be Obstruction of Justice and more than enough reason to throw you in holding."

"You won't do that. Besides, I don't really know."

"I won't?" Kate asked, blood rushed to her cheeks as anger sparked behind her eyes. "And why wouldn't I?"

"Because. I'm going to walk out of here now and go about my business. You don't have enough to hold me as I haven't said anything. You want to arrest me, fine but you won't because you know it won't stick. I'm done talking." The man said everything in a smooth, velvety voice that made Rick feel slightly queasy. His head swam and the smile the man had on seemed to wiggle like a worm.

The man stood and they both watched him place his fedora on his head as he walk to the door. He paused at it, turned to them again. "Oh, and sorry Richard, I don't think I'll be able to come to your party this year. Busy, busy. I wish you sweet dreams." He waved and disappeared behind the door which snapped shut.

Neither said anything for a long moment until Kate's voice cracked out of her throat. "What just happened?"

"I dunno, but I'm pretty well freaked out now. I think that was Umbrella Man." Rick said, his eyes still wide.

"If you mean a man with an umbrella, then yes." Kate said gathering up the folder and rushed to the door. Rick followed her. They reached the hall and they both took off in the direction of the elevator, but the man wasn't there. They paused and then turned and made for the stairs, taking them two at a time until they were on the bottom floor. The man was no where to be seen. Kate cursed and headed over the on-duty desk.

"Boden, did you see a guy come through here with a fedora on and an umbrella?"

The girl behind the desk looked up and then turned her gaze around the room before she shook her head. "I haven't seen anyone like that."

"Okay, thanks." Kate said and turned around to Rick who was breathing heavily as he leaned against the wall. "Where did he go?"

"He just disappeared like he did that night."

"No one just disappears, Castle. He must've slipped by us somehow."

"Sure, and everyone else down here? Come on, Beckett, you can't tell me you're not a little on edge after that."

She shrugged, clutching the folder to her chest. "A little, but seriously, he was just playing with us."

"I dunno."

"What? You think he is some fabled umbrella guy that goes around waiting for people to die and can just disappeared?"

"I don't know what to think, Kate." Rick said with a shrug. "All I know is that I'm beat, and a little freaked out so I think I'm just going to head home for now. Call me if Lanie finds anything?"

"Yeah, sure." Kate said, not trying to hide her annoyance.

"You should probably head home too, it's late and you look as tired as I feel. Come on, we can share a cab."

"Rick, I-"

"No, you don't. There isn't anything else to do here until Lanie gets done with the body and you've been running ragged. You need some sleep. Let's go." He reached out and gently gripped her wrist and she went with it. She must be tired, Rick thought, any other time she'd have snapped his arm off. She went with him for a few feet and then stopped. Rick looked back and she gave a frown.

"I need my coat and I want to talk to Ryan and Esposito real quick."

"Right, sorry." He said and released her wrist. They both went to the elevator and rode it up. Neither spoke again. Rick's mind wandered idly, mostly about what took place in Interrogation Room One. He couldn't say what happened exactly, it was like the guy's voice had some kind of power to it. The entire thing was a bit of a blur and he had to fight to keep hold of the memory.

The doors opened and Kate stalked out, heading for the two desks at the end of the bullpen. The guys were sitting there, talking amongst themselves and laughing about something. Kate walked up to them and threw the folder down on Ryan's desk, scattering the papers and folders that were on top.

"Why isn't there a name here?" She asked pointing at the folder as the two guys turned around after nearly jumping out of their seats. Esposito rolled to Ryan's desk to look over his shoulder. Ryan picked the folder up and opened it, his brows raised and wrinkling his forehead.

"What are you talking about? There's a name right here." Ryan said putting the folder back on the desk and pointed at the top line of the paper. Kate bent at her waist and looked down.

"Faust Weyer?" Kate said aloud and Rick started which both of the guys saw.

"What's wrong?" Esposito asked and Kate turned around.

"Faust Weyer?" Rick's voice shook just slightly and he swallowed to get it under control. All three detectives looked at him in confusion. "Johann Weyer was an occultist in the 1500's, he wrote a ton of stuff on demons and such and spoke out against the persecution of Witches." Rick said quickly. "Faust is from a play where a scholar makes a deal with the devil, it ends with his soul being torn from him and he's taken to hell." He made a motion of tearing apart something with his hands.

"Your mind suddenly goes to that with the name Faust Weyer?" Kate asked disbelievingly and Rick held his hands out and cocked his head to the side.

"I'm on edge, he was freaking creepy."

"Right," Kate said and looked back to the folder. She stared at the name for a moment, her brow furrowed deeply and then looked up to Ryan. "I swear, it wasn't there earlier."

"Beckett, that's my handwriting, it was there." Esposito said. "Is this a game or something? What happened?"

"Nothing, look I'll tell you guys later. I think I'm just tired." Kate said placing a hand to her forehead. Her lips were pulled thin and her eyes closed tightly. She did look tired, and suddenly slightly older. Rick reached out and touched her shoulder and her eyes shot open, her gaze going to him.

"Come on, you need some sleep." He said and looked over to Esposito and Ryan for help. Both of them perked up.

"Yeah, go on, Beckett, we got this." Esposito said and Rick saw Kate's eyes dart over to them.

"If anything turns up you better call me." She said, her voice soft. "I don't care if it's the guy collected stamps. I want to know."

"No problem, go get some sleep." Ryan said and shooed her away with a hand. Kate frowned and then turned, Rick's hand finding hers and she looked down at it and then at him.

"You look like you might fall over at any moment, just want to make sure." He could see she was about to argue, but then seemed too tired to and she let him lead her out of the bullpen, to the elevator and down to the street. They paused just before getting a cab and stared up at the full moon that was shining beams of blue through engorged clouds. It looked like it may just rain after all.


	3. Death Sentence

**A/N: **

_Xonze walks into a bar. He stops at the entrance and searches out the patrons, looking for his drunken lawyer friend. He finds him in the back booth, a ring of smoke and empty glasses surrounding him. He looks almost ready to pass out._

_Xonze sighs and makes his way through the maze of people to stand at the front of the table._

_"Ah, Xonze, what can I do for you?" His lawyer friend asks holding his head up, but it comes out in a slur of words._

_"I need your help in writing another disclaimer." Xonze says, taking a seat by him and sighing._

_"You keep doing this kind of stuff they'll kill you anyway." He says laughing and Xonze just shakes his head._

_"Can you do it?"_

_"Sure, get me another beer."_

Okay, so that didn't work. He passed out after I got him another beer, so I'll have to do this myself. Please don't hurt, kill or maim me over this, lol. It is a scary story and so bad things happen. Trust me, and read the entire chapter before you assume anything. :D

Enjoy.

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><p>Chapter 3<p>

**Death Sentence**

They stood on the stoop of her building and Rick squeezed her hand, looking up to her with concern. "I could stay."

Kate shook her head and pulled her hand free. "I'll be fine, Castle. You're the one that's scared."

"Yeah, was kind of hoping we could cuddle." She let a laugh escape her and he grinned.

"Not on your life." She tried to reel the smile in some.

"Can't blame a guy for trying." He said and took a step backwards. "See you tomorrow, Detective. Get some sleep."

"You too. Night, Castle."

With that he hurried down onto the sidewalk and hopped into the waiting cab. Kate paused there, watched him go for a moment and just enjoyed the cool night air that played on her skin. She couldn't believe how nervous she felt right then. Something about that guy. Christ, she was getting as bad as Rick now. The guy just ran away. He didn't disappear.

Even so, her gut told her that something was very amiss and it was that feeling that made her rush through the door and hurry up to her apartment.

She unlocked the door, stepped in and locked it again, slid the safety chain into place with slightly shaking fingers. She then turned around to face the darkness of her apartment. The moonlight was casting eerie shadows over her living room, the bare tree outside of the window looking like long boney fingers, reaching for her. The corners of the room looked like pits, hiding a world on the other side of shadows.

She closed her eyes, counted to three and then opened them feeling slightly better. It was an old trick her mother had taught her for whenever she began to freak herself out, which happened often when she was little. There was always something in her closet, some disturbing beast waiting for her to fall asleep.

A couple of times she even almost wet the bed because she'd been too afraid that something would grab her ankle if she tried to leave to go to the bathroom. She got over those fears a long time ago, but every once in a while they'd show up. Usually with just a spark, a moving of a leg further away from the bed than was needed when getting up in the middle of the night; a sudden need to turn on the lights when walking down the dark hall to her bedroom. She couldn't articulate what the feeling was from, but she almost always followed it.

She had stopped believing in Santa when she was three, but only because she could be logical about it. Monsters weren't exactly logical. It was those early years of being afraid that had built up her skepticism, for if someone could talk to spirits or ghosts then that meant that there could be something waiting for her in the dark.

She sighed finally and reached out, flicking on the switch for the light. It buzzed for a moment, flickered and then went out with a small pop. She cursed loudly, her heart jumping into her throat and she closed her eyes once more. God damn, Castle. He was what got her all riled up with his stupid Umbrella Man thing.

Crossing into the living room she turned on the small lamp that sat by the couch and then went to the kitchen, turning that light on as well. She paused in the circle of light as it chased back the darkness. She had to be tired if this case was getting to her, she thought. Still, turning the lights on wouldn't hurt anything and they were somehow comforting.

She went to the fridge and found a number of things to choose from, all of it take out and most of it chinese food. She picked a carton at random, grabbed a fork from the drawer and headed back into the living to sit down on the couch, close to the light.

The TV that sat against the wall across from the couch was off, its blank screen staring at her and she shifted in her seat, trying to decide if she really felt like turning it on. As if on cue the screen began to crackle slightly, a small whine coming from the back of it before the face of the local news anchor came on, his voice surprising loud as he recited information about some public transportation strike. She nearly dropped the carton she held, jumping up from her seat. The channel changed as soon as she stood and she paused to stare at it, licking her dry lips.

"Okay..." She said slowly, mostly just to hear her own voice. Her heart pounded in her chest, threatening to burst from her ribcage. She took a deep breath to try to settle herself and sat the carton down on the coffee table as the theme song form the Halloween movie began to play. She placed her hands on her hips, letting her logical mind take over which calmed her almost instantly.

She turned around and looked at the couch, then at the coffee table and the side table. Something was missing, but what it was she couldn't quite say- the remote. Her face distorted in anger and she tore into the cushions, pulling them from their place. She found the remote between the cushion she'd sat on and the one next to her. She picked it up and looked at it, cursing it in her head. She had freaked herself out.

She lost her appetite and picked the carton back up after turning the TV off. She threw it into the fridge and slammed the door before making her way toward her room where she got some night clothes and then headed into the bathroom. A shower made her feel better, the warm water pelting off her skin seemed to chase away the chills that had been riding her nerves all night long.

The shower finished, she dressed as quickly as she could, brushed her teeth and went to bed, turning the lights off as she went, each one a small battle inside her. Light felt safe and she felt like a small child once more as she hesitated turning them off. She was able to manage it and made it to her bed without much trouble.

Once under the covers she sighed heavily into the pillow, warming it against the autumn chill that seemed to cover her entire apartment and closed her eyes. She drifted for a moment until sleep finally took her, or at least it would have if not for the sudden loud bang from outside her window.

She jolted awake, cursed and opened her eyes slowly to stare at the glowing green numbers on her alarm clock. 1:02. Dammit. She yawned and tried to close her eyes again, figuring it was just an alley cat or something of that sort, but she barely had them shut when a scream rattled her windows and her ear drums.

Jerking fully awake, she sat up and threw the covers off. She rushed to the window, her bare feet loud on the floor, and looked down into the darkness of the alley. She cupped her face to fight the glare and searched the ground. There was something moving down below, like fish just under the surface of a pond. She squinted trying to get a better look but another scream froze her blood. This one louder, more painful.

Kate pushed off the window, grabbed her gun and badge from her nightstand and headed out of her apartment. The darkness seemed to be everywhere, like a second skin it clung to the walls, only being broken slightly by the orange flickering dome lights that littered the hall and stairs. There was a graininess to the entire world, or maybe it was just sleep tired eyes playing tricks on her, either way she rushed down the stairs.

She bursted out the door, her bare feet turning to ice when she touched the concrete of the stoop. She hurried down the stairs, used the railing to whip herself around and into the alley. She paused at the mouth as he eyes fought the darkness for sight. Her ears weren't having any problem though and she could hear a gurgling sound further into the alley as well as someone making a grunting noise ever few seconds as if putting a lot of effort into something.

"Police!" She announced and took a step into the alley, her gun drawn, her finger resting against the trigger. The weight of the hand gun was reassuring, almost protective. She gripped it a little tighter as she took a step forward. A smell wafted out of somewhere deep in the alley, carried by a wretched wind. It was the smell of rotten food and garbage. She gagged and swallowed hard, but kept her head forward.

The darkness seemed to trail back as she picked her way forward, as if she was her own light, or it was afraid of her. She paused and took a quick glance behind her. Darkness had filled in right behind, leaving behind a gloom to seem to hang in the air.

"Police, come out with your hands up." She called, this time the gurgling was closer, but the grunting had disappeared.

The sound of footsteps echoed in the alleyway and somewhere further on a trash can tipped over. It sounded like thunder in a bottle to Kate's ears. She rushed forward, able to see a black mass laying on the floor of the alley. It was writhing as if in excruciating pain. She went toward the mass but stopped a few feet away, clearing the scene. She wished she'd grabbed her cell phone or at least called it in.

She scanned the area around her but the darkness gave away nothing but silhouettes. She listen, waited for the sound of footsteps to come but they never did. She dropped to her knees beside the mass and found that it was a body. The darkness slowly phased away like a developing picture, starting at the feet and reaching the face. She gasped, a hand going to her mouth.

It was Rick.

She dropped the gun down beside him and reached to his face with her hands, cupping it as he gasped. Blood spilled from his lips and ran down from the corners of his mouth like cherry syrup. His blue eyes searched her. Her lip and chin quivered and her breathing shuttered as she held his gaze, eyes burning with unshed tears.

She removed a hand from his face and reached down, gripping his hand as tightly as she could and it was then that she saw what happened to him. He'd been stabbed. A dozen or so wounds bled out onto the asphalt mixing with a small puddle near where he lay. A river of red.

His eyes were scared and he tried to speak but no words came from his blood slicked lips. He was staring at her like he wanted her to save him. What could she do? What the hell could she do?

He blinked away tears, his hand squeezing hers for a moment and then... nothing. The light dropped out of the blue irises and one last spurt of blood escaped his mouth. His chest no longer rose or fell.

He was gone.

She screamed.

She screamed long, loud and hard, her throat becoming raw in a matter of seconds. This couldn't be happening, her confused brain screamed along with her, not again. Not like her mother.

Thunder echoed above her and it began to rain, joining with the blood that was pooling in Rick's blue button up shirt. His chest appeared under the shirt as it became soaked. The wounds seemed even larger now as the rain pelted off his body like they were thirsty, opening more for the water. The droplets even hit his open eyes and they never flinched, allowing the water to follow the curve of the eye and then fall away like tears.

She released his hand and slammed both of her hands against his chest, tears falling free as she lost emotional control. She couldn't lose him, not like this. She pounded on his chest again, causing blood to bubble over from his mouth. "No, you can't! Castle!" She screamed but it came out in a whisper from her raw throat. She pounded on him again, her hands and PJ sleeves becoming soaked with blood and rain. Finally she collapsed over him and cried. "Please, Rick... don't leave me."

The rain fell heavier, felt like ice pelts as the droplets bounced off her scalp and the nape of her neck. The trash cans drummed in an alien beat while the usually soothing rhythm of rain on asphalt made it all seem more real to her. She sobbed against his chest and looked up to his slightly open mouth, his head tilted to the side.

"Katherine? What have you done, dear?" She jumped at the voice, and turned around to see the man from the interrogation room standing behind her in the middle of the alley. His umbrella was open and he tipped his hat to her. It took her a moment to realize the water cascading off of the black fabric of the umbrella was red instead of clear.

He was smiling at her, his brows raised in a good natured way and his teeth gleamed from some phantom light. He took a few steps forward and bent down on the other side of Rick's body, looking at it like one might look at an interesting rock. He made a tutting noise and then looked over to her.

"Just like your mother I see. Such a waste, he was quite talented, at least that was what I've been told. I'm not a fan of mysteries to be honest. I see far too much death in my line of work. Don't you?" The sound of rain hitting his umbra was almost deafening.

Kate tried to talk but found there were no words left in her head. The shock of loosing Rick had shifted all brain power to keeping her from breaking down completely. She stared blankly at the man as her eyes continued to water.

The smile on the man's face grew.

"Right, sorry. I know this is a traumatizing moment, but I do have a job to do." He stood up to his full height and with his free hand reached around his back and produced a pair of cuffs. "Sorry, my dear, but you're under arrest for the murder of Richard Castle."

"Wha-" Was the only thing she could get out before she was roughly pulled to her feet and felt the cold steel of the cuffs click around her wrists. "I- I didn't kill him."

"Of course you did, it's all you ever talk about. Killing him, killing your partners. After all, you are the one standing over the body with a gun, are you not?"

"He was stabbed!" She screamed as the man shoved her forward, red rain was mixing with her tears. Her hair was now matted to her head except for a few strands that swung into her face, slapping against her cheek.

"Oh, right, right. Did I say gun? I meant knife. Now come along, your Death Sentence must be carried out in a timely manner. No need for a trial of course, we all saw how you shoved him away, stabbing him as you did so. Each little innocent kiss in front of him just drove that knife deeper, didn't it? You enjoyed seeing him in pain." She heard a click of a lighter and turned her head to see the man puffing on a cigarette, the orange light from the end coloring the very front of his face.

"I never meant to hurt him," she said, and she felt his hand push hard against her spine.

"No? That lie you told was what killed him you know, the final stroke that sent him knocking on death's door. You may not have meant to hurt him, but you know what they say: We always hurt the ones we love." He paused for a moment, walking with her and then added: "Guess you need not worry about finding a costume for his party, not that you really wanted to go."

He shoved her forward and Kate stumbled, stepping on a rock which dug painfully into her foot. She cried out and lost her balance, falling to the ground where her chin hit and made her teeth click. Pain etched its way along her jaw and the entire world went white in an instant.

She groaned, twisting her head to the side and opened her eyes. Tears blurred her vision of the darkness for a moment but she wiped them away with her fingers. It was then she realized she was no longer cuffed.

Using her hands she pushed herself up off the floor so that she was sitting and looked around her room. The light from the alley lamp made the room gloomy looking, but it was her room. She was inside again. She cocked her jaw to the side painfully and reached over to the lamp beside her bed, turning it on. She was on the floor, the covers from her bed retracing the trail to the floor she took. Working her legs she untangled herself from the sheets and stood.

In three large steps she made her way over to the window as her mind began to replay what had just happened. The alley was lit by an orange light that seemed to cover the entire area. There was no darkness down there except for where pieces of a building jutted out. No one was out there. No Umbrella Man. No dead body. Nothing. It was raining though, that was the only thing that seemed to have followed her.

She still didn't feel convinced though and rushed out of her room to pick up her cell, tears collecting at the edges of her eyes as she allowed herself to hope that it was all just a dream, that Rick was at home and was all right. That he hadn't died like her mother.

The tears fell free as the phone rang for the sixth time and there was no answer.

"Rick... please pick up."


	4. For Your Actions

**A/N:**

_A fizzling sound comes from the darkness of the room. Suddenly a flame flares to life and a hand, drenched in orange, holding a wooden match just above a well used candle, comes into view. The hand dips down, touching the flame to the wick and the room suddenly turns a little brighter, but no less gloomy._

_"Good Evening." A deep, harsh voice says and the hand waves out the match and drops into the darkness around the candle. "You've read the story so far, and I hope you've enjoyed it, if not then you may wish to skip this chapter as it is as __worrisome__ as the last." The deep voice cracks and the person coughs harshly._

_"Sorry, can't keep that up for long. Allergies. Anyway, I'm warning you: this is a scary story and so bad things happen. If you read the last chapter you might as well read this one." Eyes appear in the darkness, like white floating marbles. "Hopefully it won't be too unnerving."_

_"Others will like this just as much as the last, or at least I hope so. So, I bid you all a fair night and I hope you enjoy this next chapter."_

_A breeze blows through the room and everyone shivers as the candle goes out and the area is dropped back into darkness._

Enjoy.

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><p>Chapter 4<p>

**For Your Actions**

Rick walked through the door of his loft and was greeted by a darkness that seemed to have attached itself to the walls. Even the light from the kitchen didn't seem to be putting up much of a fight anymore.

He dropped his keys on the side table, their clattering of metal sounding like an explosion in the quiet room. He flinched as he pulled off his jacket and threw it on the coatrack. He crossed to the kitchen, wiping a hand across his face as he went. He opened the fridge and then closed it after a moment of staring. There was nothing in there that he wanted and honestly he wasn't very hungry. His mind kept running over the interrogation of the guy with the umbrella and how he just disappeared.

He stifled a yawn and walked out of the kitchen just as the bulb blew above the stove. The sharp pop made him jump, his entire skin tingling as he turned around to see what had caused the noise and found himself in complete darkness, save for the small bit of light trailing between the slots in the shades. His breathing was rapid and he placed a hand to his stomach, trying to calm himself as he went into the living room.

He turned on the light there and sat back in the couch, watching the dancing pinpricks of color in the LED jack-o-lantern on one of the shelfs of his bookcase. The lights were almost soothing and would have calmed him down had the grin of the pumpkin not distorted the longer he stared. The teeth grew larger, the eyes squinted down while a burning orange bled through the foam. The lights made the mouth seem to be in motion, speaking to him without sound.

He shook his head and rubbed his eyes with the heel of his hand. When he looked back the pumpkin was like it had been.

"Way too tired..." He said and stood again, keeping his eyes away from the pumpkin and headed for his room as quickly as he could, fear moving along behind him causing him to question every movement he made.

When he was little he had a fear of the dark and always had a feeling of being watched in his room. He couldn't count the nights he sat in bed, wide awake, watching the shadows play on the walls like distorted, evil puppets; the wind their puppeteer. He swore he was never alone in his room, that something was always watching from the window or from his closet. He had even seen something peering in from the window once, golden eyes searching his room and then locking with his eyes. He screamed that night and wouldn't sleep in his room for almost a week.

The fears would keep him up most nights and when it didn't he used the sheets to cover his head, exposing no skin. If there was no skin then the monsters couldn't get to him. He smiled at the memory. The magic of a sheet; the logic of a child. He turned on the lights as he went down the hall to his bedroom.

He went to his dresser, grabbed a shirt and sweat pants and headed into the bathroom, pulled off his clothes and hopped into the warm water of the shower. It was like fire on his chilled skin and it made him yelp He showered quickly, spending maybe five or so minutes before getting out and drying off with a shiver. He brushed his teeth and dressed in a sweat shirt and sweat pants. That done he made a straight line for his bed, his eyelids growing heavy as he followed the siren call of his bed.

Once his head hit the pillow sleep was almost instant, taking him into its grasp and pulling him deeper. The dream started quickly enough, him with Kate sitting on a park bench and them talking and laughing while eating lunch. He reached over to kiss her and from there things changed to a bedroom and took a turn for the sexual- then a phone rang. He looked down to her hip, no phone, only smooth skin and then he realized it was him that was ringing.

He jerked from his sleep, his cell phone buzzing next to him on the night stand and he opened one eye, mumbling. He could see his alarm clock, the red numbers reading 1:15. With a groan he turned over and placed a hand over his eyes, wishing he could go back to sleep, but the phone would not stop it's ringing. After the sixth ring he reached out and grabbed it, placed it to his ear.

"Castle." He said slowly, the tiredness evident in his voice. There was no answer for a moment and then Kate's voice came over.

"Hey, sorry, did I wake you?"

"Yes," Rick said, too tired to joke. "What's up?"

"We found the guy, he's in a warehouse on the other side of town. I figured you'd like to come along." Kate said, her tone sounding surprisingly happy.

"Uh, yeah sure... which guy?" Rick stifled another yawn, groaning slightly into the phone.

"Thanks for that," Kate said and a small laugh followed. "The guy that buried the kid in the graveyard."

"Okay, sure, you picking me up or do you want to give me the address?"

"I'll swing by, just make sure you're ready, okay?"

"I will." He said and Kate hung up the phone. He stared up at the ceiling for a moment, just watching the shadows playing and then sat up and got out of bed. He went to his dresser again, stumbling because it seemed to be so much darker all of a sudden. He felt his way to the light by his dresser and flicked it on. It didn't push back the darkness as far as he thought it should have, it was like the light just stopped after about four feet, making a true line between light and dark.

He dressed quickly in jeans and a sweater and made his way out of the room, leaving the lamp on as a bit of a beacon back. The rest of the loft was just as dark. The corners seemed to be slithering in black, like tar dripping down the wall. He closed his eyes and shook his head, wishing it away but when he reopened them the tarriness was still there.

There was a creepy feeling running up his nerves and he tried to shrug it away as he walked to the door. He pulled his jacket off the coatrack and threw his arms into it before going out into the hall and down to the lobby.

He stood at the glass doors waiting for Kate's car, passing the time talking with the doorman. They had just gotten into talking about football when Rick's eyes caught a car stopping just out front. He could see Kate inside, looking to the building and watching him. He smiled and said a goodnight to the doorman who nodded and backed away to his desk, disappearing shadow.

"Morning, Beckett." Castle said as he sat down in the passenger side of the car, a chill breeze following him in. Kate looked over and gave him a full smile.

"You too, you ready for this?" Her voice was soft and a little unusual.

"Always ready, you all right?"

"I'm fine, just... had a bad dream." Kate said and offered a waning smile as she pulled out into traffic and headed across town.

"What about?" Rick asked after a few moments and he saw Kate's eyes flicker his way.

"I'd really rather not talk about it, if that's okay with you, Castle."

"No problem," Rick said, shrugging as the car came to a stop outside of a very large brick building. They certainly made good time, he thought as he glanced out his window There were police cars everywhere, positioned to block off the street, their lights blinding as they flickered over the entire area. A number of uniforms were all standing near the gate, looking up at a single lit window on the face of the building. The entire warehouse was dark except for that window.

Rick got out with Kate and followed her up to the line of uniforms where they met up with Ryan and Esposito. The two detectives were standing by the brick wall that marked off the courtyard, talking amongst themselves before they perked up when Kate and Rick came closer.

"He's in there all right. We were able to confirm it." Esposito said, checking his gun where it attached to his leg.

"Okay, good. We'll go in. Castle you stay here." Kate said turning around and placing a hand to his chest.

"No way, come on. I've been in more dangerous situations."

"Fine, but you stay behind me at all times." She said, pressing hard against his chest as if to make a point. He nodded. "Good."

"Is it me or are you being pretty lenient with him lately." Esposito said and Rick could see the slightest hint of color wash over her cheeks.

"Can it, Esposito." She said turning away from him and pushed past Rick, made her way through the gate. The three boys followed her across the open asphalt of the parking lot and to a steel door inset into the old red brick of the warehouse. There was a sodium light above it, buzzing softly. Like the lamp in Rick's bedroom it didn't seemed to be pushing back the darkness as much as it should have.

Kate placed her shoulder against the wall on one side of the door. The two detectives took the other while Rick stood just behind her.

"My count," She said holding out a fist. She dropped it slightly and held up one finger, then did the same for the second. For three she pulled open the door and the two detectives filtered in and she followed just behind them, gun drawn.

The warehouse was a bucket of pitch inside. Except for the flashlights cutting circles into the dark and dust Rick couldn't see more than a foot in front of him. He reached out and touched the back of Kate's vest, used her as a guide as she followed her flashlight.

There were numerous bangs around the building. The other officers were entering from any other exit they could and Rick felt a little safer knowing that it wasn't just them making their way through the dark.

The four of them moved quickly through the lower part of the warehouse, following Ryan. They reached the stairs and it was then they heard gunshots a floor above them. All three swore and Rick just looked up, the blasts still ringing slightly in his ears.

Ryan and Esposito took off up the stairs but Kate stopped and turned around. "Take this," she said holding out her spare pistol, the end pointing to the floor.

"You sure you want to do this? Remember what happened last-"

"I do, you saved my life. Let's hope it doesn't need to happen again, but if it does I'll be better off if you're armed, okay?" She said handing the gun over before she bent down and kissed him gently on the cheek. "Keep your head down though."

Rick nodded, confused by the kiss but not complaining and both of them stomped up the stairs and into the hallway. At the end of it, sitting in a true circle of light, were Ryan and Esposito. They were stacked up against the wall, peaking around the corner. The sound of gunshots came again and the wall across from the two detectives exploded in a cloud of yellowish chalk-like dust, scattering tiny pebbles everywhere and covering both detectives. They both cursed and fell backward and Kate hurried ahead.

"NYPD, come out with your hands up!" Kate yelled, taking Ryan's place at the corner of the hall. There was no answer other than footsteps heading away from them. Kate peaked her head out and then motioned for the two detectives and they both flanked her, followed her in. They moved quickly, their guns trailing just slightly behind their eyes which were taking in everything. The hall was dimly lit, but Rick was sure they weren't missing anything.

Rick lagged behind, the pistol feeling heavy in his hand. He gripped it with sweating fingers, hoping it wouldn't slip from his hand if he needed to use it. He reached another corner of the hall, quite a ways behind the group, just as a chorus of gunfire rang out. There were three screams or groans and then nothing. Just complete silence.

Rick's heart leapt into his throat and made it hard to swallow as he went around the corner and in the direction the rest of the group had gone. He made a right at the intersection and stopped dead in his tracks, fear and worry gripping his chest.

On the broken and shattered beige tile laid three bodies, their arms and legs sprawled out and their pistols laying at their side. Rick took a step forward, his vision becoming clouded as if he had stepped into a hidden fog. The bodies were covered in the white mist for only a moment and seemed to burn off the longer he stared, starting at the feet and finally ending with the face.

It was his friends.

Kate laid the furthest away, Ryan was at his feet and Esposito laid propped up against the wall. Gaping holes in their chest and abdomen bled out onto their clothes making tiny streams of red that began to mix together in the middle of the hall. He bent down next to Ryan, his entire body trembling so hard that he could barely keep his balance. He could see without touching him that Ryan was gone.

Rick sucked in a shuttering breath and moved away, saying a small prayer as he went. He came to Esposito next. He bent down, touched his neck, hoping for a pulse. He was gone as well, his chin on his chest, his eyes forever staring at the tile. Better than at him, Rick thought absently and paused, looking at the huddled mass that was Kate.

Her chest was rising and falling slowly in small labored breaths. He rushed forward, slipping on the blood and landed on a knee as he came beside her.

"Kate," he said, tears brimming in his eyes. This was his nightmare, the worst thing that could happen to him in his life right then. He lifted her up in his arms, her eyes lazily looking at him and her mouth was open showing red smeared teeth. Tears were streaming down her cheeks and into her hair. Her muted green eyes begged him for help. He broke then.

He sobbed, his bottom lip trembling as he gripped the back of her jacket with a hand and placed another gently behind her head, lifting her to face him. Her hair fell from her face, dangling behind her, the ends coated in blood.

"Cas... I.. so..."

"Shh, shh, Kate, don't try to talk. It's going to be all right, I promise it's-" He didn't finish because he felt her stop breathing. Her eyes dimmed as they locked with his and her body went limp.

He pulled her up so that her head rested on his shoulder, his hand bracing the back of her head and he cried. He cried as hard as he could ever remember, gripping at her jacket, wishing her back. Wishing for her to just say his name again, even if she was angry. He wanted her back.

Thunder rolled in the sky above and rain began to splatter against the windows on either side of the hallway. He could hear it pelting off the glass in random beats and he squeezed Kate just a bit tighter. The world didn't care that she was gone, but goddammit, it should.

Another sound, this one a crumbling noise, came from a few feet away but he couldn't care to look up. All that mattered to him in that moment was Kate and being near her.

"Richard, what have you done my dear boy?" He jerked at the sound of his name and looked up from Kate's limp body. At the end of the hall, standing where the roof seemed to have collapsed, was the man from interrogation. He stood under a waterfall of red rain, his umbrella opened and held back slightly so that the front was clear of water.

He smiled and took a step forward, a splash of red soaking his suit pant leg. "Three in one day? My, my, you are an overachiever, more so than your daughter it seems like. Oh, hmm... maybe not."

"Who the hell are you? What are you doing here?" Rick asked, gently laying Kate down to the floor and reaching for her gun. His fingers just touched the metal when it spun away from his hand like someone had kicked it. He reached for the gun he had dropped beside him, and that too spun away.

"Come, come, take responsibility for your actions my dear friend. You broke her heart so many months ago, you killed a part of her and then you came back hoping to bring it back to life." The man lit a cigarette and took a long drag from it. He flicked off the ash and stared at the long white stick. "Maybe you did, but we all knew you'd kill her again, somehow, some way."

"No, I would never kill her." Rick said in a huff, his face distorted in anger and confusion. His nostrils flared as he stood. "I didn't do this, someone else did. I would never hurt my friends."

"You wouldn't? But you did, my dear boy." The man said, blowing out another puff, it wrapped around itself into a circle and drifted up to the sprinklers that were set into the ceiling. An alarm went off, buzzing in all corners of the warehouse. The sprinklers turned on with a fizzing sound and Rick was drenched in red. "Yes, they are your friends, aren't they? Still though, I have a job to do."

The man dropped his cigarette to the ground and it fell into a puddle, going out. "Richard Castle, you're under arrest for the death of Katherine Beckett."

"I didn't kill her, or them!" He said, pointing at the three bodies, feeling sick as he did so.

The man smiled. "No, I know you didn't kill the other detectives, Katherine killed them." He said, walking forward and grabbing Rick's shoulder, shoving him against the glass. Out the window he could see nothing but darkness through the sheets of rain, like a black hole. There were things out there though, he could feel it in his bones. Something was watching this entire thing, watching him through the same glass.

The feeling of cold steel burned against Rick's skin as the cuffs clicked into place. They were almost painfully tight and the man tugged on them as if to make sure of that fact. That done the man pulled him from the window and hurried him along, over the body of Kate and Ryan. Rick kept his gaze straight, he couldn't look at them like they were.

They reached the corner of the hallway when Rick heard a familiar ringtone going off. The man stopped him and reached into Rick's pocket, pulled out the phone. "Hmm, it's Katherine." The man said and Rick heard him answer the call.

"Yes? Oh, of course he is, this is his phone isn't it?" The man said with a small chuckle. "I'd be happy to put him on the phone, hold on for one moment." The man dropped the phone from his ear and turned Rick around. "It's for you, it's Katherine. She sounds awfully worried about you."

The man put the phone against Rick's ear and just before Rick said hello the man kicked his legs out from under him and he tumbled to the floor. The entire world went white but he could still hear the rain pelting off the roof like mini explosions.

He opened his eyes and found his floor beneath him, his covers wrapped around him like a cocoon. He gave a heavy sigh and pushed himself up off the floor, blinking as the memory of what he had seen came flooding back to him. He felt sick.

He looked around from his place on the floor. The true darkness had gone, leaving behind the normal gloom of a fall night. His lamp was off and there was no sign of the man with the umbrella. He brought his hands in front of him, making sure that they weren't actually cuffed and then sighed when he saw they were not. The only thing that was true from the dream, it seemed, was the rain.

The ringtone was still going off somewhere in the dark. He untangled himself from the covers and stood. On his nightstand sat his phone, the screen lit up with the cover of Naked Heat. It was Katheri-Kate. He reached down and snatched it up, praying that it would be her on the other end. That she would be all right.

"Kate?"


	5. He Was There

**A/N:**

_Rain was falling outside and Xonze rested back in his chair, watched as droplets streak down the windowpanes. Lightening flashed, drowning the study in a bluish light for merely a moment. He swiveled around in his chair at the sound of footsteps and came face to face with his readers. They all were illuminated by the dim flickering light from the candelabra that sat on either side of his desk. They stared at him with anxious looks and Xonze couldn't help but smiled. _

_His laptop was on, the only light on his side of the room and the glow under lit his face, showing a few days worth of a beard._

_"So, you're back again? I guess these stories aren't too scary after all." Xonze said and steepled his fingers. "Well, be that as it may I have a new chapter here. This one has a little lightness to it that you should all enjoy. Horror is all about pacing, isn't it? Yes, I think so."_

_The readers all looked at each other and spoke, their voices mere whispers in the night. "Hush, hush," Xonze said gently and bent forward, his fingers hanging over the laptop's trackpad. He moved the mouse a bit and then clicked 'Add Story.' "I hope you enjoy this, and do help yourselves to the refreshments in the main hall. Just... don't go anywhere by yourself. People tend to... what's the word? Get lost in this house, and we don't always find them."_

_Xonze smiled grimly as his readers turned to look at each other, a few of them chuckling nervously and a few of them looking stone cold, slight worry hiding behind their eyes._

_Xonze chuckled and shooed them away with a hand. "I wish you all a fair night, and I shall see you tomorrow." He paused, his gaze turning to the ceiling. "I hope."_

* * *

><p>Chapter 5<p>

**He Was There**

The door bell rang in the stillness of the early morning and Rick stood from the couch. All the lights where on in the bottom part of the loft as he couldn't stand staring at the darkness and electric bill be damned. He was beginning to feel like he did when he was a kid, afraid of the dark, especially after what he felt in the darkness of his dream.

He crossed the room to the door, checked the peep-hole and then opened it. On the other side was a tired looking Kate Beckett. Her hair was slightly curled into ringlets, and laid messily on her shoulders. Her eyes were red and puffy and as soon as the door open she threw her arms around Rick's neck and pulled him close. Rick returned the hug, so glad that she was real, that she smelled real and felt real. He took handfuls of her jacket like he had in the dream and held her tightly.

"Rick, you really are all right." She whispered and Rick nodded into her shoulder. "It seemed so real."

"I know." Rick said, his voice soft. "Was he in your dream?"

She pulled a way, wiping at her eyes and offered a painful smile. "Umbrella Man?"

"That's one name for him, so he was?"

"He arrested me for... for killing you." She said, each word made her flinch as if someone had lashed her for it. "He said I killed you. That it had to be me as I was the one standing over the body with a gun, and he said because I p-" She looked away and took a step to the side, facing the floor. "What about you?"

Rick reached out and took hold of the collars of her jacket, lifting it from her shoulders. She withdrew her arms and undid the scarf she was wearing and handed it to him. He placed both on the coatrack and then took hold of her hand, pulled her toward the couch and the bright light.

"He was there." Rick said and looked down their joined hands as he talked. "God, it seemed so real. You called, saying you found the guy that killed the kid we found in the graveyard. We got there and you, Ryan and Esposito were gunned down. I... I was holding you as you died." The last word came out as a croak and Kate squeezed his hand. "He showed up then, saying that I killed you, that I always would kill you. That I killed a part of you when I left and that 'they' always knew I'd finish the job." He sighed looking over. "Ryan and Esposito were both dead, but he said I didn't kill them..."

"Who did he say did?" She asked, her lips going thin and Rick hesitated. "Rick, tell me."

"He said you did."

Kate licked her lips and brought her bottom one in between her teeth which she nibbled on for a moment. "What's going on, Rick? Why did we have dreams that seem to match so closely together?"

Rick shrugged, leaning back into the couch, the leather crinkled as he did so. "He can influence our dreams?" She looked over to him, her eyes squinted in disbelief. "What? Do you have a better explanation?"

She didn't say anything, just shivered and brought her hands to her shoulders, her forearms crossed over her chest.

"I can't get over how real it felt. I'm still shaking." Kate said and hugged herself a little tighter. Rick wanted to do something to make her feel better but all he could manage was a small nod. She dropped her hands to her lap after a moment and began to pick at the nail polish on her thumb nail. "God, I hate this, I feel so afraid all of sudden, that if I close my eyes the dream would be real."

"I know, I feel the same way." Rick said, licking his lips and watching her. "You want something to eat? I'm feeling pretty hungry all of sudden."

Kate just nodded and he got up, rounded the couch and headed for the kitchen. He grabbed some eggs out of the fridge and went over to the stove. "Scrambled all right with you?"

"Fine," Kate said and he looked over when he heard her get up. She rested against the pillar and stared at the front door. She had her arms wrapped around her waist and Rick felt a strong need to go to her, to comfort her, and himself in a way. He didn't, instead he turned his attention to the frying pan that was starting to heat up.

"Rick?" He looked up at his name. "Is this your umbrella?"

Kate came around the pillar holding a black umbrella, the tip a piece of steel, the fabric stained a darker color like it was wet. It wasn't his but he had seen it before. He stared at it until the nerves in his thumb told him he had placed it on the pan. He jerked away, cursing and placed the edge of his thumb into his mouth.

"Are you all right?" She asked as she rushed around the counter, dropping the umbrella on top. He hissed through his teeth as he stared down at the reddening skin. Kate took his hand and looked at it, concern playing on her face. "Doesn't look too bad," she said and looked up to him.

He gave her a half smile, his eyes leaving hers and looking at the umbrella that was sitting a few feet away. "That's the same one he had in the dream. It was raining."

"Mine too. Raining red." Rick nodded at her and went to the sink and ran cold water over the burn.

The room fell quiet except for the rain pattering off the windows and the sizzling of eggs. Rick cooked quickly, throwing the eggs on two plates as soon as they were done and finishing up the toast just after. They sat side by side at the counter, both looking down at the eggs, picking at them with their forks. The black umbrella was sitting in its same place, neither of them wanting to touch it.

Finally, Rick said, "Where did you find that?"

"It was leaning beside the coat rack, dripping reddish water on the floor." She said softly and took a bite out of her toast. She swallowed hard and reached out to his free hand. "Thanks, Rick."

"For?"

"For letting me come over. I'm not sure I could be alone right now."

"I couldn't be either and I needed to see you. That dream... I've never felt so sick after a nightmare. I needed to see you because I had to know if you were all right." She smiled at him but it was still sad.

"The way you were killed, in my dream... it was almost exactly like my mother's murder."

Rick stopped with his glass of milk at his lips. He looked over and frowned. "I'm sorry, Kate. I really am, but you know you can't get rid of me, right?"

She smiled and nodded her head. "Lord knows I've tried."

"Exactly, so if you think some bozo with an umbrella is gonna do me in... well, let's just say you're not that lucky." Rick said chuckling and he was able to coax a slight laugh from Kate.

"That thing creeps me out." Rick said once they had calmed down. He was pointing over to the umbrella with his fork and swallowed the eggs that were in his mouth. It was leaving behind a wet silhouette of red water where it laid. "Where the hell did it come from?"

"Can we get rid of it?" Kate asked after a moment. Rick dropped his fork to the plate, gave her a nod and reached out with a trembling hand and grasped it. He grimaced at the wetness, it felt almost like a fish after being pulled out of a stream, and carried it to the window. He popped out the little window, looked down at the street to make sure no one was below and just let it drop to the ground.

"There, it's gone and I feel a hell of a lot better. I just hope it doesn't pull a Mary Poppins."

Kate finally let out a complete laugh and her expression soften some. It didn't last long for her cell phone began to ring and she looked down to it. Pulling it from her pocket she looked up at Rick as she answered, "Beckett."

It was Lanie and Kate put the phone on speaker.

"-sleeping still."

"No, I've been up for a while now. What's up?"

"Well, I found an ID in our vic's jeans. Nathan Celeb, twenty-four year old college student. He lives with his mother apparently. I have an address and a college ID."

"Well, that gives us a place to start," Rick said and Kate glared at him.

"Castle? Kate where are you?"

"At Castle's, but-"

"What? What are you doing over there at five a.m.?" Kate's cheeks burned a bright red and Rick mouthed 'sorry' to her.

"I needed to talk to him."

"Sure... talking, I bet that's what you did."

"Lanie! Nothing is going on, we just... I needed to see him." Kate said, her voice almost painful and it seemed to have an affect on Lanie as she dropped the questions.

"Okay, well anyway, is there a chance you could come down? I want you to see a few things."

"Sure, we'll be down in a bit. See you."

"Bye," Lanie said and hung up. Kate hit the end call button and dropped the phone back into her pocket.

"Is it wrong that I don't want to have anything more to do with this case?" She asked Rick. Rick grinned as he put the plates in the sink and then looked back at her, resting against the sink.

"It's a guy with an Umbrella, not exactly a scary dude." Rick said and then paused. "Well, he was last night, but I was already rattled when he showed up."

"Sure, Castle. You'd be scared if he was holding a puppy."

"Are we talking an evil puppy here? Because those are scary, my friend." She laughed again, her face no longer red and strained. Things were actually lightening up for the moment and Rick found himself wanting to hold on to that. He wanted to tell her they could go to the morgue later, but he knew she wouldn't go for it. Still, the day was going to be a long one and his lack of sleep was already catching up to him.

He went to the coatrack and pulled her coat and scarf from it and handed it off to her before getting his own stuff. A few minutes went by and after leaving a note for Alexis and his mother Rick followed Kate out of his apartment and to her car.

Rain clouds seemed to suffocate everything and Rick looked up to them once they were outside. They were low to the ground, being sliced by buildings yet the rain never let up. It was like ice on his bare skin and they both hurried to her car and got in.

"Should have brought that umbrella." Rick said looking out the windshield thoughtfully.

"And if you did you'd be walking."

"I'd be dry." He said, finally looking over and Kate just shook her head as she started the car and turned out into traffic.

The car ride was silent for a few moments, but Rick kept shifting in his seat and stealing glances at Kate. He couldn't help it, he still felt so rattled from the dream. Everything felt so real, and he kept worrying that if he took his eyes off her that she would disappear.

"Castle, stop that, you're making me nervous."

"Sorry," He said sheepishly. "I just... I can't get over what I saw."

"I get it, I do, Castle because I feel the same but I'm here, you're here and it was just a dream... a very creepy, vivd dream, but a dream all the same."

"What about this Umbrella Man, why was he in both our dreams?"

"Probably because he freaked us both out and our brain decided he'd make good nightmare fodder."

"So you admit you were freaked out." Rick said smiling and Kate sighed heavily.

"Yes, all right, I admit I was slightly freaked out when he walked out and disappeared, but not pee my pants freaked out like you were."

"Now you understand why I wanted to leave so soon." He said and Kate made a disgusted face which caused him to crack up slightly.

The rain continued to fall as they pulled into a parking space near the M.E.s office. They sat in the car for a moment under a streetlight, both debating if they really wanted to go out into the downpour. Rick was staring out the windshield, the rain sliding down it like sheets, smashing into the wipers as they swiped up and down every few seconds.

It was in one of the swipes he saw something that made his breathing skip. In the rain, walking across the entrance to the parking lot and going from light pool to light pool was a man with a black umbrella. He skipped over a puddle and made his way to the entrance of the building. He was wearing a suit and the bottom of his pants were stained a darker color.

"Castle?" He didn't answer, his eyes were locked on the man as he entered the building, dropping his umbrella down just before going in and looking back. It was the same guy as before, he was grinning, his teeth bare. He stared directly at Rick before closing his umbrella and heading inside.

"Did you see that?" Rick asked, reaching over for the door handle. He pulled on it but the door was locked. "It was the guy from our dreams."

"See what, Rick? What are you talking about?"

"Come on, we need to go after him," Rick said pulling on the door handle again and then, realizing that wasn't going to work, unlocked the door and then opened it. He rushed through the rain, face pelleted by raindrops and he could hear Kate splashing behind him as she tried to catch up.

He reached the entrance, pulled open the door and rushed into the brightly lit hall. He stopped to catch his breath, his eyes searching out the lobby which was empty except for the receptionist who was eyeing him.

"Castle, what the hell are you doing?" He turned to Kate as she came up behind him, holding a hand to her stomach while taking a few deep breaths. Rick moved away from her without a word and went to the desk.

"Excuse me, did a man with an umbrella and a fedora come through here?"

"Old guy? Looks a bit like Doc from Back to the Future?" The woman asked, still giving him a quizzical look.

"Yes," Rick said, and leaned back to look down the hall. "Was he here?"

"Yeah, he just came through a minute or so ago."

"Really?" Kate asked, coming up beside Rick.

The receptionist nodded. "He came to see Dr. Parish."

Rick and Kate both froze for a moment and then rushed down the hall, their shoes clicking on the blue tile.


	6. Darling, Answer the Poor Man

**A/N:**

_It was raining once again outside the manor, as it seemed a storm had set up shop just over head. Xonze sighed, looking out the windows of his study. There was something soothing and yet eerie about rain to him. Maybe it was why horror stories seemed to start with 'It was a dark and stormy night.' He shrugged the thought away and turned around to his writing. The chapter was finished, and he sort of liked it, but it was a little dark and bit more… what was the word? Lascivious? Yes, that was it. Not explicitly so, but there were tiny bits here and there. _

_He wondered if he should really post it because it was another dark chapter and then he reminded himself: It's a horror story. He smiled gently and posted the story. As if on cue his readers entered his study, though a few seemed to be missing. _

_He smiled at them and reached out, grasping a bell from the corner of his desk. He rung it twice._

_"You rang?" An older man appeared at the doorway, his suit aged and ragged looking, but his smile was true, showing gums instead of teeth._

_"Yes, Martin. Could you start to gather a search party with the rest of the staff and see if you can find our missing readers?"_

_"At once sir." Martin said and bowed deeply before disappearing. Xonze turned his attention back to his readers,_

_"So, glad to see some old faces here, most of you seem to be enjoying the story. I'm glad, thrilled even. But I feel I must warn you with this chapter that it's as dark as the ones before it. No one dies, which I guess makes it not as horrible, but bad things still happen."_

_The readers all gave a small nod, their lips drawn in and their eyes searching._

_"Right, I hope you enjoy this chapter and I shall see you tomorrow." Xonze stood, picking up his black umbrella from beside his desk. "If you'll excuse me." He said tipping an imaginary hat and made his way to the door._

_"Martin!" He shouted. "I shall check the courtyard! Perhaps one of those fiendish imps grabbed one of them!"_

* * *

><p>Chapter 6<p>

**Darling, Answer the Poor Man**

The lights flickered in the hall as Kate and Rick jogged down it. Thunder sounded above, rattling the windows, like a train had gone by outside. The lights dimmed, shuttered and then shut off.

The two stopped. The hall which was dimly lit in dark blue from the storm outside so they were in complete dark. Rick's eyes took only a moment to adjust to the lighting but even then he couldn't see very well.

"The emergency lights should kick on soon." Kate said, but Rick didn't think she sounded so sure as the seconds began to tick by. He moved a little closer to Kate, and after a moment her hand found his. "I'm not liking this."

"Me either." Rick said and she started forward, bringing him with her. Lightning flashed and in the burst of light Kate moved a little faster, leading him down the hall and coming to a stop by a pair of double doors. The room was black on the other side and felt almost unnaturally so.

"Lanie?" Kate called and slowly pushed the door open, her other hand still grasping Rick's. "Lanie, are you in here?"

She stepped into the room bringing Rick with her and the door swung close behind them, cutting off the dim light from the hallway. The windows seemed almost opaque, only a bit of light shining down in small beams to the counters that were set against the wall.

A feeling of dread and unease washed over Rick, and it worsened when Kate let go of his hand and took a step away. She seemed to disappear into the darkness, melding with it. He reached out to touch where she had been but his hand grasped nothing but air.

The hair on the back of his neck stood on end and his eyes opened slightly wider, trying to see past the screen of black. "Beckett?" He called and took a step forward, his hands going out to stop himself from running into anything. He stumbled a few steps in, a tray clattering to the floor. He cursed loudly and his hands went out, landed on the edge of one of the tables.

Taking a deep breath he pushed himself erect, but still kept his hands where they were. It gave him a slight reference in the room and he didn't want to lose it just yet. "Kate, come on, answer me." He said, his voice trembling just slightly.

"Richard, my boy, what are you doing here?" Rick's eyes shot open and he turned around, keeping his hands on the table. Sitting on the counter was a silhouette of a man, backlit by a flicker of lightning. Rick's mouth went dry and he tried to swallow. "Well? Will you answer an old friend?"

"Where's Kate?" Rick asked, but it came out choked in his dry throat. Did he fall asleep again, or was this real?

"She's here," the voice said, coming from the silhouette. "Where else would she be?"

"Why isn't she answering me then?"

The voice laughed. "Right, right. Katherine? Darling, answer the poor man."

Rick felt an arm grab him from behind. It bent at his shoulder and a hand went across his chest and to his stomach. Nails dug into the flesh there and he felt cold air against his ear. "Richard..."

Rick's breathing came in a shuddering gasp as something wet darted against his earlobe. "Oh, Richard..." It was right against his ear. The voice was soft, raspy, but distinctively Kate's. The hand went lower, gently pulling at his belt and the waist band of his jeans. Rick held in a squeal as he tried to pull away but the arm held him in place.

"Why'd you let me die, Richard? Why did you kill me?" The hand went even lower, rubbing the heel of her palm against the crotch of his jeans. Rick started and tried to move away again, struggling as the cold wetness of what he guessed was a tongue darted against his earlobe again followed by teeth, just a nip at the end.

"Don't you care for me at all? I cared for you, you know? But then along came a woman. Like a little spider she snatched you up, didn't she... Just like any other woman willing to put out. They pulled you in like you were their lapdog. That is, until you got what you wanted." The hand squeezed gently and a small groan escaped his throat even though he tried to not let it.

"Kate..." He tried to say but his voice came out as a squeak.

"Don't talk, Ricky, it's my turn don't you think? You killed me... the least you could do is let me talk." The hand gripped painfully and Rick bit his tongue to keep from calling out. "You left me standing there, broke me as you walked away. Why would you do such a thing?"

"It's a good question, Richard. Why did you break her?" The voice from before said and the shadow on the counter shifted.

"I-" He tried to talk but the hand twisted and he did cry out this time. A girlish laugh sounded against his ear and then cold skin pressed itself against his cheek.

"Sorry, you were saying?" He could feel something sticky against his neck and his mind instantly went to the blood that had fallen into Kate's hair in the dream.

"I couldn't stand... I couldn't stand to be around you when you were with Demming. I mean you didn't want me around. You pushed me away. I tried, I really did try to stick it out but-Ah!"

"Then why the hell didn't you make a move." She whispered into his ear, her fingers moving painfully below while another boney hand reached out to his neck, the nails dug into his skin and her nose nuzzled against his cheek. "If you wanted me so badly then why didn't you make a move when you had a chance?"

"I-I did. You shot me down at every chance." He grunted at the pain that was building in his lower abdomen.

"Only because you just wanted me for a quick screw. You didn't want anything more than that, did you?"

"Yes, I-I did want more than that, you didn't though. You weren't interested." He said and a sharp pain shot up into his stomach and he crumpled to the floor, his hands going between his legs. He turned watery eyes up to where he had been standing and there he found a stark white light shining over the table. He found Kate there too, but it wasn't the Kate he came to the morgue with. It was the Kate from his dream.

She was nude, the telltale Y of stitches going between her breasts before curving over them and to her shoulders. Her gun shot wounds were sown up as well. Her legs were bone thin as were her arms. He couldn't quite make out her face for her matted hair haloed her head, but he could see the ends of her shoulder length hair were stained red.

"You're a goddam child, Richard Castle." She said, her voice sounding dangerous. She wobbled slightly as she walked away from the table. "Maybe in the first year I wasn't, but when you left I was willing to give you a chance. When you came back, didn't you notice that I was acting different to you? Letting you in a bit more? No, your thick male brain didn't pick up on that, did it? You were just too much of a wuss to man the hell up and ask me out."

"I could only go by what you said, Kate. You said never. Why would I think anything suddenly changed? You were dating Josh after all." His voice sounded painful to his ears. She bent down and turned him on his back, straddling his waist. She brought her head to his, their noses touching, her chest resting against his. He could see her white eyes now, like spilled milk compressed under a glass.

"I was in love with you, Ricky. I was in love with your books and when I met you I thought it was a dream come true, until I got to actually talk to you and found out you were nothing but a jackass." She arched away from him and then pressed her cold blue lips crushingly against his for a moment. "Then I actually got to know you and while you annoyed me horribly, I did fall in love again. With the man, not the books. You ruined that."

Her lips smashed against his again before he could answer and he tried to push her away but she seemed to have an unnatural strength. Her tongue darted out, almost choking him and just before he thought he was going to pass out she broke the kiss and sat back up. She wiggled on top of him, her hands resting against his chest.

There was a smile on her lips and she turned slightly, her lavender skin looking sickly in the light. "You tore out my heart, Ricky. You killed me."

There was a laugh from the counter and Rick turned his head up to see the shadow still sitting there. "So, Katherine, what are you going to do about it?"

"Tear out his heart?" She asked in a girlish voice and a giggle escaped her.

"Splendid idea, an eye for an eye and all that." Rick heard a tip of steel hit the tile and he knew it was the Umbrella Man sitting there. "Well, don't hold back on my account, darling." There was a flash of flame and then a red dot appeared by the window followed by a haziness that wafted in the blue beams.

He turned his eyes back to Kate. A piece of metal glinted in her hand and it took a moment to register that it was a scalpel. "I'm sorry, Kate," he said, watching her bringing the blade around. "I did love you. I just didn't know what to do to get you."

"I promise, Ricky, I'll do it quickly, just like you did to me." She bent down, kissing him again and then slapped his face hard, hard enough that his vision went white as he felt something pound on his chest.

"Castle, come on, wake up." It was Kate's voice but he didn't want to open his eyes. He couldn't look at her now, he just hoped she'd end it quickly.

"Dammit, Rick." His cheek burned and he had to open his eyes. Bent over top of him was Kate, she was dressed and her mother's ring dangled just above his eyes.

She looked slightly frighten and her look of worry disappeared when her eyes met his. "Christ, Rick, don't do that to me." She said, a sad smile playing on her lips.

Rick glanced around the room, his eyes slowly adjusting to the glow of the emergency lights that were shining pools of white around him. He turned his head to the side to see Lanie knelt down beside him. "What happened?"

"You tripped in the dark and knocked your head pretty hard." Lanie said, shining a flashlight into his eyes. He squinted against it.

"How long was I out?"

"A few minutes," Kate said, not meeting his eyes anymore.

"Something wrong?" He asked and tried to sit up but Kate placed a hand to his chest, keeping him down.

"No, not exactly. Did yo-"

"I had a nightmare again." He said cutting her off and she frowned at him.

"Like before?"

"Kind of." Rick said and left it at that. He didn't want to think about the dream again, the images were already vivd enough on their own without him trying to remember. He kept his eyes on her as she was kneeled down next to him. Her's kept darting over to him and then away, her lips thin and she seemed almost worried about something.

"All right, nothing seems damaged," Lanie said standing up and Kate mirrored her.

"Let's get you to your feet." Kate held out her hand. Rick took it and with her help he stood, wobbled and came to rest against her shoulder.

"Sorry," he whispered, his head feeling like it was spinning on his neck.

"It's okay," she said softly, and squeezed his hand as she stood him straight.

Lanie moved to stand in front of them both, her arms crossed over her chest and a disapproving look on her face. Rick's vision still swam, but he could tell by the look that he might have said something while he was knocked out.

"Castle, what do you mean you had a nightmare again? Is that why Beckett was over at your place?"

"Sort of," Rick said slowly. "We both had a nightmare that seemed eerily similar."

"About what?" Rick looked over to Kate who was still not meeting his eyes.

"Mine was about Beckett being gun downed." He said and Lanie's eyes flickered.

"And this last one?"

Rick sighed, stood a little straighter and Kate took a small step away from his side. "This one had Kate dead in it."

"If she was dead why were you talking to her?" Lanie asked and Rick's eyes went wide. "You said something about having to leave Kate because of Demming. You were trying to explain it to her it sounded like."

"I-" He cursed in his head and turned to Kate. She ran her teeth other her bottom lip and looked over to him finally, her expression unreadable.

"Look, didn't you say you had something you wanted to show me?" Kate asked, turning her gaze to Lanie.

Lanie pursed her lips and then walked over to the counter where the man had been sitting in his dream. Her shadow was harsh on the floor and Rick felt a shiver run through him. She stopped there for a moment before turning around with a folder in her hand. She walked back, flipping though the dozen or so pages that sat loosely inside.

"I can't show you what I wanted, but I can tell you about it."

"We're listening." Kate said, crossing her arms.

Laine glared at Kate for a moment before looking back to the folder. "I told you his name and that he's a college student. I ran some tests to check for drugs and alcohol, and found neither. I also didn't find any defensive wounds, or anything of that sort. The only wounds are on his fingers from clawing at the lid."

"What does that tell us?" Rick asked, finally feeling the strength come back into his legs. He still felt a little sick though and he wasn't sure if it was from the dream or knocking his head.

"That either he got in there of his own accord, or someone held him at gun or knife point." Kate said, her hand going to her chin and a finger tapped against her bottom lip. "Why though?"

"You're the detective, it's your job to figure that out." Lanie said and Kate glared this time. "Just kidding, honey."

"Not in the mood for jokes." Kate said and Rick saw her eyes dart to him for a moment. "I think we should take a ride up to where he lives, what do you think, Castle?"

Rick shrugged. "Sounds good to me."

"All right, thanks Lanie." Kate said and began to head out of the room. Rick went to follow her but paused at the threshold.

"Wait- Lanie," Rick said, holding up a finger and then pointing it at her. His head was still throbbing, but he needed an answer. "The receptionist at the front said our Umbrella man, guy-thing... that he came to see you. Did you see him?"

"The only people I've seen down here today were you two. What's with this Umbrella man stuff?"

"Nothing, just Castle's overactive imagination." Kate said as she grasped Rick's arm and pulled him out of the room and into the hall. They walked together, heading for the exit.

"What exactly did I say?" Rick asked as they passed by the receptionist desk. The lady behind the desk gave them both a small smile and a wave.

"When?" Kate asked, still looking forward. She had her gloved hands in her pockets and her chin down pressing against the scarf she wore.

"When I was out."

She pursed her lips for a moment and then paused. She rested her arm on the push bar and turn back around.

"I was really dead?" She asked, her voice steady.

"And naked," Rick said with a small grin and she made a disgusted sound and went to go through the door but Rick stopped her. "Sorry... yes you were dead, but yet not. You were undead Kate."

"Can we talk about anything without you making a joke?"

"I'm not joking you were, and things just got sickeningly creepy. Umbrella man was there in the dark, but you did all the talking. Telling me I was a child and an idiot and that you should rip out my heart like I did yours."

"You never ripped out my heart." Kate said and for a second Rick thought he saw he gaze falter.

"No? I'm glad to hear that." Rick said as they stepped out under the canopy at the entrance and stood staring at the rain as it fell over the edges.

"What else happened?"

Rick swallowed hard. "You kept saying I killed you and that you... well it doesn't matter."

"Rick come on, it's just a dream."

He took a deep breath. "You said that you loved me for my books, but were starting to love me for myself, and I ruined that."

Kate dropped her head, her eyes dancing over the wet concrete. She finally turned to him a smile that didn't seem real on her lips. "You certainly have interesting dreams."

"Yeah..." Rick said and watched her head down the steps, running to her car. "Interesting."


	7. I'm Just An Observer, Dollface

**A/N:**

_ Xonze stumbled in from outside. His suit was covered in mud, his hair clung to his head. He grasped onto the doorknob of the door to his study and used it for support. He looked like he had been through hell and back. _

_His readers all turned around to look at him because of the curses he had made coming down the hall. A few went to stand but Xonze held up a hand. "I'm all right." He said and stumbled his ways across the room, wobbling slightly once he got to the desk. He fell into his chair and forced a smile._

_"I'm sorry, those Imps are rather rambunctious when it rains. They captured me last night, making me write silly plays for them like 'How the Imp ate a Panda.' Things like that, but I was able to escape."_

_He leaned forward, reaching for his laptop. "This chapter shall be a little late, but I hope its not too much of a problem. If I had a choice I would have posted it earlier, but… you know how Imps are."_

_His readers nodded solemnly and Xonze smiled. "Oh, I see we have found some our missing readers. Welcome my friends. You have wonderful timing. This chapter is a lot like the last one, but a little longer which is to make up for the delay. Please remember that by reading this story you agree not to kill me." He looked over the faces of his readers and noticed a few that would probably kill him anyway. He sighed. _

_"I will try to steer clear of the Imps in the future and hopefully I won't be late on a chapter again, but life does have a habit of getting in the way. I hope you enjoy this, and I hope to see you tomorrow, my dear Readers. I wish you a fair night."_

_Xonze laid back into his chair and was a sleep after only a moment. The readers looked at each other, all of them having the same idea and there was a sudden chorus of marker caps being pulled off._

Chapter 7

**I'm Just An Observer, Dollface**

Kate and Rick entered into the precinct, both soaking wet, but even so Rick lagged behind slightly, holding a hand to his head. Kate kept glancing back at him as they walked through the front door and headed up in the elevator.

"Are you all right?" She asked bending slightly so that she was face to face with him.

"No... yeah." Rick said, he didn't look at her and his eyes were squinted slightly. Kate couldn't help the worry that began to well up inside, and she reached out, touched his shoulder when the elevator doors opened up.

"Kate?"

Kate looked up at the sound of her name and found Josh standing there, his hair matted by the rain and his hands in the pockets of his leather jacket. "Josh? Hey," she dropped her hand from Rick's shoulder. "What are you doing here at-" she looked down at her watch, "seven in the morning?"

"Stopped by to see you, is he all right?" He asked and pointed to Rick who was leaning back in the elevator.

"I'm fine." Rick said, his voice cold and he looked up to meet Josh's stare. Kate could feel the coldness in the elevator and frowned at it. What was it with guys? Get two of them in a room with a girl and they suddenly become jerks to each other.

"Good." Josh said back. "Anyway, I was wondering if we could reschedule our date for tonight. I have a presentation to make, kind of last minute."

Kate nodded, and took a deep breath. "Yeah, sure. I'll probably be working late anyway."

"Okay," Josh said, grinning and moved to the side to let the two of them out. He brushed Rick's shoulder as he went past and into the elevator. He stopped Kate with a hand, brought her to him in a kiss. She glared at him as he stepped back. She hated when he did that in public and by the grin on his face, he knew it. "Talk to you later, Kate. Castle."

"Later." Rick said and started to massage his temples. Kate gave Josh a small wave as the doors closed and then turned around to Rick.

"Are you sure you're all right?"

Rick sneered slightly. "As I said, I'm fine so no need to seem worried."

"What?"

"Nothing. Sorry, my head hurts some." He said, his voice softening.

"You did knock it pretty good."

"I know, I was there."

She stopped at her desk and turned around, glaring at him with her hands resting on top of the desk. Rick ignored it and went around her to his chair. "All right, what's going on, Castle."

"Nothing is, why?"

"Then why the sudden cold shoulder?"

"Headache?"

"You give me a headache all the time," she said smirking slightly, but Rick didn't even crack his lips upward.

"Yes, and you give me a cold shoulder all the time." He said and sighed. "Look, I'm gonna go get coffee. I'll be back."

She watched him go into the break room and then turned her gaze back to the elevator, sitting back on the corner of the desk. That was the third time he acted weird after seeing Josh. It didn't make sense though since as far as she knew he was still with Gina, so what was his deal? Was this going to be a replay of Demming all over again? Could she not bring boyfriends by work? Well, maybe that wasn't such a problem, it could be that Josh kept showing up randomly, as if just to remind everyone that he was still around. Maybe also the fact that she hadn't told anyone about him. Him showing up that first time took everyone by surprise, including her.

The more she thought about it the more it seemed like it wasn't just for her that he stopped by. It kind of felt like it was for Rick too, and could it be Rick knew that? Was that why things were so cold between them?

She sighed and turned back to see Rick at the espresso machine. The things he said while he was knocked out confused her ever more. He had tried to explain why he couldn't stick around, but with Josh she thought she was doing a pretty good job not distancing herself from him. He was the one that seemed to be pulling away, even more since Josh first dropped by.

Rick came back holding one cup and was sipping gently at it as he walked across the bullpen. She felt a small pang hit her stomach. She hadn't asked for coffee so why would he get it for her? Because he usually did. Still, it was just coffee and he wasn't feeling well, he probably didn't even think about it.

She brought her face back under control as he sat back in his chair. She rounded around her desk and sat down facing him.

"What?" He asked after a moment of her staring his way.

"You sure you're okay?"

"Beckett."

"Okay, sorry." She said and turned around, slightly hurt with the way he was treating her at the moment. He'd be back to normal soon enough she told herself as she began to leaf through a folder, but it wasn't fair then. He didn't have to treat her like... like she had treated him last year.

"I didn't ask him to stop by." She said softly.

"Didn't say you did. It doesn't matter to me anyway."

"Okay." They sat in relative silence and Rick finished his coffee and got up to put the cup in the sink. He came back with a second cup and sat it on her desk. She looked over with a small frown at him and he shrugged.

"Sorry, head is a little fuzzy and I forgot that last time."

"Oh," she said smiling finally. "Thanks."

"Sure." He said and there was still a coldness in his voice. She was not looking forward to the drive out to their vic's home. She wished she knew what was causing him to be cold. He was being distant even before Josh showed up, and that just seemed to make it worse. She wanted to push, but she knew it wouldn't do her much good. If Rick wanted to open up he would. But she was worried about him now, especially with the headache.

"Maybe we should stop by a doctor when we leave to go visit the mother." She offered, taking a sip from the cup. Rick shook his head. He was bent down, his fingers rubbing his temples again.

"No."

"Ric-"

"Beckett, I'll be fine, okay? Seriously, stop it."

She didn't say anything, but she kept her eyes on him as she finished her coffee. She took a glance over to the clock. It was a little after eight, not too early anymore. She stood up and pulled her jacket from her chair before moving in front of him. "Ready?"

"Yeah." He said and stood, he still had his jacket and scarf on and she wondered how he wasn't dying from the heat.

"Let's go then." They both headed toward the elevator, Kate hit the button and they stood waiting in front of the doors. She stole a few glances at him but he didn't even seem to notice. "So... any theories?"

"None, other then our Umbrella man shoved him in the coffin." He said, his voice quiet, almost sounding like he was in a great deal of pain.

"Does it really hurt that bad?"

"Nope, I just like holding my hands against my face and waiting for someone to look me in the eye so I can do this." He looked over to her and sucked in his cheeks while flapping his hands against his face, looking like a fish for a moment. He did it twice causing her to laugh and then dropped the face, returned to the pained look.

The elevator doors opened and they both stepped in. Kate hit the lobby button and rested back against the rail along with Rick and waited.

The storm was still rumbling outside and the lights inside the small elevator flickered twice and then stayed on. She sighed heavily, watching them. That was one thing she didn't want to have happen, for the elevator to just loose power and they being stuck there for however long it took for the power to come back on.

She said a little prayer as each red number denoting the floor appeared and then disappeared. Two showed up and then went out like someone had flicked a switch. The ceiling lights followed and the small area was dropped into darkness.

"Goddammit," Kate said and searched her hip for her flashlight. She found it and flicked it on, turning it to where Rick had been moments before, but didn't find him. She flashed the light around, the white beam seemed to cut into the darkness.

"Castle?" She called and she heard a distant scream. It echoed like she was in the woods, the sound bouncing off every tree.

She gave a shuttering breath as the scream suddenly became louder, it was a scream of horrible pain and she could have sworn she heard her name being called. "Rick, where are you?"

She took a step forward, and then another and another until she went pass where the elevator car should have ended. There was nothing but darkness around her and it seemed to go on forever. Her flashlight hit upon the trunk of a tree and beyond that was a house that looked to be falling down, its porch roof slanting to one side. The screaming was coming from inside.

She drew her gun even though she knew she couldn't possibly be there. She could smell the earthly smell of rotting leaves and somewhere wood was burning, the smoke stinging to her nostrils. She took a deep breath to try to calm her nerves and walked up to the door. She didn't knock, didn't test the door, she only put her shoulder to it and shoved.

The door cracked and then snapped open, dropping her out onto the floor. She stood after a moment, a small bit of pain playing in her upper arm. It'd probably bruise. Her hand went looking for a light switch. She didn't actually think it would work, but to her surprise she found one and when she flipped it up the room was aglow in a weak orange light from about a dozen sources. She looked around in shocked surprise at what she was seeing.

It was Rick's loft, only... not exactly.

The living room had been cleared and instead of a couch there were about six rows of chairs. They were all facing toward Rick's study and she let her eyes follow the trail to find a coffin sitting on a table. It was large and looked very expensive. She took a step forward, her mind telling her not to but she couldn't help it. She had to see what was going on.

With that step forward the chairs were suddenly filled by what she could only describe as shadow people. They looked 2D, bending oddly with long legs and arms. The heads all turned toward her, and even though there were no eyes she knew they were staring her down.

There was one solid person, however. It was a man in the back row, sitting with his hands folded on his lap and he tapped his foot as if waiting for something. He was the only one not looking at her, instead he kept his head straight, watching the coffin.

She adjusted her grip on the pistol and moved quickly to the man, trying her best to ignore the shadows that watched her. She stood just behind him and raised the pistol so that the end touched the back of his head.

"Who are you? What's going on?" She asked, her voice emotionless.

The man in the chair reached into his jacket pocket and Kate's finger began to squeeze the trigger a little more.

"Just getting a cigarette, darling." He said and pulled the packet from the inside of his jacket and held it up to show her. That done he brought it back down, smacked the top against the back of his hand and pulled one out, put it between his lips. He stuffed the pack away and then brought out his lighter, lit the end.

He gave a small sigh and smoke escaped his mouth in a milky white cloud. "You're late by the way, Katherine."

"Late for what." She said and steadied her hand, the trigger a quarter of the way squeezed.

"For his funeral, obviously." He turned his head slightly and she could see his eyes searching over her. "Not a very good friend, are you?"

"Maybe not, so tell me what it is you want." She said and the man turned completely around and talked with the cigarette in the corner of his mouth.

"Me? I don't want anything, it's you two that keep dragging yourselves back here." He gave a shrug and every light went out except for what seemed to be a spotlight that was right above her. She looked up into the blinding light but saw nothing above that could produce it. "I'm just an observer, Dollface."

"Yet, you keep showing up and playing an active role."

"Put the gun down, all right? It's only going to get you into trouble here."

"Maybe, maybe not, so let's find out." She said and began to squeeze the trigger. She felt a hand grasp her wrists from behind, throwing off her aim. The gun went off, striking one of the shadow people sitting in the seat beside the man. A strangled cry echoed in the room and the shadow dropped to the floor, a thick ink-like liquid began to pool towards Kate's feet. Another hand came out of the darkness and took hold of the top of the gun and ripped it from her hand.

"Shot to soon." A voice said from behind her and she went to turn but a hand pressed against her shoulder with enough force to stop her. "Guess we could always just cuddle." The voice was against her ear now, raspy, tired sounding. A nose began to nuzzle against her cheek.

"C-Castle?" She said and felt a hand on her side. It squeezed and then slowly dropped to her hip and rested there.

"Morning, Kate. How's things?" The breath was cold against her ear and she shivered at his touch. Another hand ducked under her shirt and came to rest against the bare skin of her stomach, his skin feeling dry and rough on hers. "What did Josh have to say? Anything interesting? Is he glad that I'm finally gone? No more trying to assert himself with you. Are you glad?"

"Castle, stop it." She said almost breathlessly and felt the hand under her shirt begin to roam.

"Stop what? Oh, I'm sorry. Right, you like your private life to be private. So you lie to me. I tell you about Gina when you ask, but if I ask something about you I get a little spiel, or a none of my business. You're so very sweet."

The roaming hand continued while the other wrapped around her stomach and drew her back to him. There was a wetness on his skin that soaked through her shirt and made her shiver again.

"I only lied to you once. I didn't want to hurt you." She said slowly as his hand found a sensitive place. "You were with Gina so I found someone too." A smallish groan escaped her as his hand continued to move and she bit her lip to keep it from happening again.

"Yes, and why did I go with Gina?" He asked, and kissed her neck, gently sucking on it.

"I- because of Demming?" She asked and gritted her teeth when he squeezed his hand almost painfully. "I didn't realize it then, Rick. I didn't think you were interested, he was."

"Oh, I was interested, had been for a long time, but you said never. Never ever. So I took that as an answer. Yet, you hated me when I came back, railroaded me in the interrogation room and asked about Gina, and then made a snide remark about how many relationships I've been in. Did I ever do that to you? Have I ever said something to you about one of your boyfriends, asking 'Does he make you do everything on a deadline?' No, I joked with you, made fun of them. Never you."

The hand dropped down and went to her stomach, trading places as the other hand dropped further and she gave a frown. "No, you never did. I shouldn't have either, but I was upset C-ah- Castle."

"So upset, and yet you made me out to be the bad guy?"

"You did do that, Katherine. He left because you shoved him away, and then he came back and you made it out to be all his fault. You could have called as well."

"He said he'd be back." She whispered as the hand reached the crotch of her jeans and the heel of his palm pressed against it. "I waited. I broke up with Demming for him."

She could see the man in the chair shrug, still puffing away on his cigarette. "You did, but only after you hurt him. Lied to him. You never did tell him that you broke up with Tom, not even when he came back. Not even friends do that kind of stuff. So what is he to you?"

"I-I don't know." She said and clenched her teeth as Rick's cold lips went back to her neck and bit into the skin.

"Why don't you? It's simple. Are we friends? Just co-workers? Or do you want us to be something more?" Rick's voice asked against her neck.

"I care about you. I do. I was willing to give you a-a chance."

"For all of about six minutes, and then I was back where I started wasn't I? Even though it wasn't my fault. Then Josh shows up and you don't even mention who he is, and you never mentioned him before. You felt all right asking about my relationships, but you don't tell me about yours."

"And you pushed him away again. You killed him once and you're working on doing it again. You are sadistic." She could see the man now, his face lit by the flame of his lighter as he lit another cigarette.

"That's Katie." Rick said and Kate felt herself falling forward and not able to stop herself. She hit hard and Rick's hands grasped her sides, flipping her on to her back.

She could see him now, the knife wounds, while sewed up, were still oozing. He was naked, a Y stitched into his chest. He dropped to his knees and pulled his body between her legs, laying across her. His face was mere inches away, his cloudy eyes locking with hers. "You always did enjoy watching me in pain, and yet it was the worse thing in the world for me to watch when it happened to you. You and your practical jokes. Always in on it and always against me. Sadistic is probably the best word."

"I'm sorry, Rick. I am. I do love you, but you seemed to have moved on." She said and he brought his lips to hers and kissed her roughly, before breaking away.

"Love? You don't love me." He said, laughing gently. "You despise me most of the time."

"I never did, I loved your books, and though at first I didn't like you that changed because you changed. I saw it. You didn't want more with me before, and you didn't make a move after that. How was I suppose to know how you felt?"

"Mmm," She looked up to see the man standing above her, looking down. A red dot glowing brightly and then fading. "So, she hurt you, Richard. Will you hurt her back?"

"No," he said slowly. "I don't like seeing her in pain." Kate turned her eyes back to Rick and could see an inkling of the man when he was alive. He brushed a few strands of hair away from her face before he turned away for a moment, his hand reaching into the darkness. "Sorry Kate, if you do love me, you can forgive me."

He bent down, kissing her again and it was during this that she felt the end of a pistol press against her temple. She tried to scream but it came out muffled. His other hand went to her throat, starting to choke her. Her lungs became painful, begging for air and then there was a loud click and her world went white with him still kissing her.

She opened her eyes when there was no sudden pain and found Rick's face very close to hers.

He was kissing her.

Or at least that was what it seemed like at first and then she noticed he was pitching her nose and air was being forced down her throat. He pulled away, his warm lips leaving behind a ghost of themselves and he placed his hands on her shoulders, pausing to look down at her. "Come on, Kate!"

"Castle..." She said, her body ached and her head pounded. Rick's face turn from worry to relief in a matter of a second. He gave a small cry and bent down, placing a hand behind her head and bringing her against his shoulder.

"I thought I lost you for real this time." He said, his breathing heavy and his voice hoarse. She hugged him back, though it took her a few tries to get her arms around him. She looked up to the ceiling, the golden light of the emergency lights shining down on them.

"What happened?"

"You tell me," Rick said pulling away, his hand laid gently on her shoulder, keeping her upright. "The lights went out, the entire car jerked and I stumbled. When they came back on you were on the ground, mumbling something and then you stopped breathing and I freaked."

"I had a dream." She said and Rick helped prop her up against the back wall. He sat down next to her.

"I know."

"How?" She said, confusion playing on her face and he gave a soft smile

"You were talking to me, only not me. I was dead in your dream wasn't I?" Kate nodded, not able to speak and rubbed absently at her neck. She didn't want to think about Rick being dead again. She'd probably have even more nightmares now because of it.

"Yeah, and you were awfully touchy, in more ways than one." She said, trying to make a joke and Rick looked over with mild amusement.

"So were you."

"You have a sick imagination."

"You just admitted the same thing happened," Rick said chuckling and Kate shrugged, letting a smile cross her lips.

"I did, didn't I?"

Rick nodded. "You also said the L word."

"You heard that?" Her eyes went wide. Had she really said that out loud so that he could hear it? God, what else did he hear?

"Just heard you say Josh and then love." His voice sounded dejected and Kate reached out and touched his shoulder.

"In the dream it wasn't referring to Josh." She said slowly.

"Who then?"

"I don't remember."

"Okay." Rick said and looked down with a small smile. "I tried calling out on my cell but couldn't get a signal."

"Guess we're stuck in here then, aren't we?" Kate said and sighed, bringing her knees against her chest and wrapping her arms around them. Her head was pounding and she guessed this was the headache that Rick had been complaining about earlier. She didn't blame him for acting how he did, it was painful.

"Looks like," Rick said as he reached into his back pocket and pulled out his phone. "Wanna play Hangman?"


	8. You Are A Man, Aren't You?

**A/N:**

_The day had long since died when Xonze settled into his chair. His face hurt slightly from having to rub off all the marker and he had sent his readers down to the basement for some 'alone time'. They were back now, some not looking too happy, but it was only fair. He smiled at them and only four or five smiled back._

_"Sorry, I know I'm a little late on this chapter. The day just had so much going on. The werewolves thought it'd be fun to go out for lunch today. Sadly that meant killing the neighbor's livestock. He wasn't happy." Xonze sighed placing a hand to his forehead. He reached out and picked up a pen and began to tap it against the ink blotter on his desk._

_ "We're getting close to the end here and we learn a little bit more about Umbrella man… or do we? You'll have to be the judge of what is true and what is not." Xonze sat back in his chair, it squeaked under his weight. _

_"I wouldn't call this chapter creepy, but I will say there is a bit of Caskett in here… wow that word is sort of creepy." His Readers laughed gently. "So, I do hope you enjoy this chapter and I shall see you tomorrow… if the storm doesn't knock out the power. If so, Martin might have to take up bike riding again."_

* * *

><p>Chapter 8<p>

**You Are A Man, Aren't You?**

Time had passed slowly in the elevator. Rick won about fifteen Hangman games while Kate had only guessed six of his words. Kate swore off every playing against him again. He couldn't really blame her, he wasn't exactly playing fair.

"One more game on the way?" He asked. They were sitting in her car and Rick could tell she had the same headache he had going on. The game was helping him take his mind off of it and he was hoping it would do the same for her, but it didn't seem to.

"No, Castle."

"Okay." He turned his head to look out the window. He didn't know what her problem was but she had been pretty harsh with him lately. Sure, he deserved it at times, but a lot of the cuts at him were done when he wasn't mean to her or anyone she knew. It seemed he couldn't make a joke around her without her putting him down and it was starting to get on his nerves. That and her coldness since Josh came into the picture. Rick actually kind of liked Demming, he wasn't a bad guy, but Josh just seemed to rub him the wrong way.

He sighed and watched the skyscrapers give way to small warehouses and then town homes. It was another fifteen minutes until they reached the home of their vic. The rain had let up by the time Kate parked the car but the sky still rumbled from time to time, as if it was just taking a breather. 'Hold on, I'll be right with you,' it seemed to say.

Rick was out first, stepping onto the sidewalk and looking up at the town house, his hands deep in his pockets. It was a nice place, better maintained than most of the homes around it. The siding looked new, as did the windows and doors. A lot of work had gone into the place.

His eyes glanced over the rest of the house, looking at the decorations. There were three pumpkins sitting on the step, just begging to be carved. A witch cackled behind the plate of glass while stirring a large black pot with a wooden handle. In the windows were spiders hanging down from the locks in front of white curtains.

Kate came up beside him and he could see her looking at him from the corner of his eyes. When she seemed realized he wasn't going to speak she went up the three stairs. Rick followed behind her.

She knocked on the door and they both took up a side, waiting. A dog barked from somewhere inside and seemed to race for the door wearing tap-dance shoes. Another bark, this one louder, came from behind the door as the sound of nails scratching on metal made Rick squint his eyes slightly.

The locks on the door clicked and after a second the door opened to show a woman in her early fifties. She was somewhat good looking, age had been very kind. She smiled at them, used her foot to push the dog back gently and then asked what she could do for them.

"Mrs. Celeb? I'm Detective Kate Beckett, with the NYPD." Kate held up her badge for a moment then put it back on her hip. "I was hoping I could ask you a few questions, about your son."

"Of... of course. Come in, I was just making tea." She stood to the side and motioned them in. Kate went first and Rick followed and was promptly jumped on by the dog. He was a large yellow lab and his paws reached up to Rick's shoulders. Rick looked down as the dog stared at him with golden eyes, huffing loudly, his tail swinging like a whip.

"Cobalt, get down." Mrs. Celeb said and the dog gave a small whine, but listened and landed heavily on the floor. "Sorry about that, he likes new people."

Rick smiled and shrugged. "I like new dogs."

"You sure you're not a dog yourself?" Kate asked and Rick glared at her and she frowned. It was a joke, he knew it, but he wasn't in the mood for it.

"Let's sit in the living room," Mrs. Celeb said and they followed her and the dog followed Rick. The room was as well maintained as the outside. There were a number of white bookshelves lining the back wall, stacked with old volumes with dust jackets. A large TV sat on the front wall between two windows. The furniture seemed old and worn, but well taken care of. It was almost cozy in a way.

She motioned them to the couch and Kate and Rick sat down next to each other. Even though the couch was wide they sat at the end closest to the chair that Mrs. Celeb took. Kate was at the arm of the couch and Rick was looking over her shoulder as she asked her first question.

"Mrs. Celeb, do you know why your son would be out in a graveyard so late at night?" Kate pulled out her notebook as she spoke. She paused, patted her jacket and pant pockets for a pen and frowned.

"Here." Rick whispered, pulling a pen from his jacket pocket and handing it to her. She looked back with a small nod, but no word.

"No, to be honest when the police told me where they had found him I was sure they had it wrong. Then I went down to the morgue... and it was my Nathan. He didn't like graveyards or even Halloween that much, so I don't understand why he would be there."

"Did Nathan have any friends from school that he hung out with a lot?"

Mrs. Celeb shrugged. "I'm not sure, he didn't talk about school much and I didn't push. He's... he was a grown man. What he did was his business. Though there were a couple of boys he was going out with the past couple of days."

"Do you know who they were?" Rick asked.

"No," she said and gave a frown, her lips wrinkling. "They looked like they were his age, so I assume they were kids from one of his classes, or at least from his school. But... I don't know."

"Had Nathan been acting strange lately? Coming home late? Was he irritable or moodier than usual?"

"You think it was drugs?" She asked, eyes wide. Her voice cracked and Kate shook her head.

"We don't really know anything yet. I'm just asking these questions to rule things out."

"Dottie, is everything all right?" The voice came from the other room that joined the living room. A tray rattled just out of sight and then a man appeared at the threshold to the room.

It was the man from interrogation. His eyes went first to Mrs. Celeb and then to Rick and Kate and he smiled wistfully. He came out into the room proper and took a seat in one of the chairs at the other end of the room. He bent forward, his suit legs wrinkling as he put his elbows on them. He clapped his hands together after a moment and a small laugh came from him.

Cobalt began to grow from where he was laying at Rick's feet. Rick reached down and patted his head.

"Katherine... Richard... Nice you see you both again."

"You know these two, Professor Weyer?" Mrs. Celeb asked. Rick tried to speak but he was a bit too struck to be able too. He could hear a sound coming from Kate's throat but no words followed either.

Weyer smiled again, cocked his head to the side and his cold hazel eyes locked on Rick's. "Yes, we had a nice little chat yesterday, didn't we Detective?" His eyes shifted over to Kate as he spoke. "I'm sorry, I didn't realize you would be coming by today, otherwise I'd have postponed my visit."

"You're a professor?" Kate finally asked, looking between Rick, Weyer, and Mrs. Celeb.

"He was one of Nathan's. In... what was it again?" Mrs. Celeb looked over to Weyer who drew himself up so that he sat erect.

"Introduction into psychology and the behavior of the human mind."

"Ah, right, right. Nathan loved to study that kind of stuff."

"What are you doing here?" Kate asked, turning in her seat, her knee tapping against Rick's.

"He came to pay his respects. Nathan was one of his favorite students."

"I became Nathan's mentor. He was quite brilliant, but didn't have the common sense that this kind of field requires. I was working with him on that."

Rick turn to Kate and like him she didn't look like she believed the story completely, but he doubted they were thinking the same reasons. Rick thought the guy was playing with them again, another game like in the interrogation room. He didn't feel normal.

"So, why didn't you tell this to us before?" Kate asked and Weyer shrugged.

"Didn't seem important. After all, like I said, you two do so well when you don't have all the facts."

"Mr. Weyer-"

"I'm sorry but I must be going. Richard, would you mind helping an old man with his coat? I don't mean to be a bother but my arms don't bend the way they use to anymore."

Rick watched the man stand up and then looked over to Kate, asking if he should without saying anything. "Come, come Richard, do you really need permission to help me? Why do you look at her for conformation when she doesn't always do the same for you? You are partners aren't you?"

Rick stood without a word and followed Weyer out. He took a small glance back at Kate who was watching him. He couldn't read her expression, but he still hoped he was doing the right thing. Though, Weyer was right. She never looked to him to see if something was a good idea. They bounced ideas off of each other, but she had always called the shots, and it made sense since he was there under invitation, but this kind of stuff had nothing to do with the police and yet he still looked to her.

He went to the coatrack with Weyer and stood by as Weyer picked up his coat and handed it over. "Thank you, Richard. I do appreciate it."

"Tell me what's going on."

Weyer pursed his lips as he slid his arms into his jacket. He looked over to Rick with an expression that looked like he was trying not to smile. "Whatever do you mean, Richard?"

"What game are you playing? You just disappear from the station and then you show up here and act like you didn't expect us, but you did. I know you did."

Weyer chuckled and reached out a hand to grasp Rick's shoulder. "See, that's using your head, Richard. You need to do that more, and assert yourself more. You are a man, aren't you?"

"What are you talking about?"

"You've had the dreams, are you two still so dense as to not understand?" Weyer picked up his umbrella and leaned against it, using it to support his weight as he bent forward so that he was eye to eye with Rick.

"Understand what?" Rick shrugged Weyer's hand from his shoulder. "Are you causing these dreams?"

"How on earth would I do that, Richard?" His lips had a wisp of a smile, his eyes dancing. "I merely said have sweet dreams, did you not have them?"

Rick gritted his teeth. "I don't know what kind of game you're playing, but I'll figure it out. We both will."

"I expect no less from you two." Weyer said putting his hat on. He tipped it as he made his way to the door. "I shall see you again soon, my dear boy. One last thing before I go: She cares about you. She doesn't show it I know, but she'd be as lost without you as you would be without her. Keep an eye on her because you never know when she might just up and disappear."

The door slammed shut behind Weyer and Rick jerked in surprise and went to the door, pulled it open. There was no one on the street.

Goddammit, how did he keep doing that? Rick slammed the door and went back to the living room.

Kate stood as soon as he stepped in and went over to him. "Are you all right? You look like-"

"I did." He said, cutting her off.

"Did what?"

"See a ghost. Weyer disappeared again."

"Did he say anything?" Rick nodded solemnly and then motioned to the door. "I think we should get going."

"All... All right." Kate said and turned to Mrs. Celeb, forcing a smile by the looks of it. "Thank you for your help. I'll keep you updated on anything we find out. I promise we will find your son's killer."

"Thank you." Mrs. Celeb said and saw them out.

Outside the rain had started up again. The drains on the street were flooded, clogged with dead leaves and trash. The edges of the streets became tiny streams, pushing along old soda cans and styrofoam cups.

Kate and Rick paused for a moment under the porch roof before rushing across the street in long strides. By the time they were in the car they were both soaked.

"I'm getting really sick of this." Kate said, wringing out her hair.

"Which? Weyer showing up or the rain?"

"Both. What did he say to you anyway?" She asked and Rick sighed before telling her the conversation. She didn't say anything when he was finished, instead she looked deep in thought.

"Beckett?"

"Mm?"

"You're not talking and it's sort of worrying me." Rick said with a small smile and Kate sat back in her seat.

"He's playing with us. He's a psyche professor... he's somehow implanting these dreams into our subconscious." She said and tapped her lip, looking out into the rain. "I just don't know how, or why."

"Well, however he's doing it, he's damn good at it. I haven't had nightmares that made me so afraid since I was a kid."

"Me either. None as upsetting either." Kate said.

"Upsetting how?"

She furrowed her brow at him. "Oh, I don't know, Castle. Maybe you being killed would upset me quite a bit. You are my friend after all. Why? Did me being dead in your dream not upset you?"

Rick licked his lips. "More than you'll probably ever understand."

"What?"

"Nothing, don't worry about it."

"No, seriously, what did you mean by that?" Kate had started the car and had already pulled out into traffic, but she kept glancing over as she drove.

"What? You don't think loosing you would affect me?" Rick asked, honestly surprised. "That if you were shot, killed or even just hurt I wouldn't be going out of my mind?"

"I-I never really thought about it to be honest. I guess I knew you'd be a little upset."

"A little?" He laughed and then closed his mouth. "I'd be more than a little upset, Kate. I'd be a wreck."

"Why?"

"Why do you think? It doesn't matter though, so can we just move on?"

The car fell silent and Rick sat staring out the window, kicking himself for his big mouth. He couldn't believe he actually said that much to her, went into that much detail about how he would be if he ever lost her.

"I would be too." She said softly, just barely loud enough to hear over the squeak of windshield wipers. Rick turned in his seat.

"Would what?"

"Be a wreck if I lost you."


	9. And Shot Darling Katherine

**A/N:**

_Xonze sighs as he types the last few changes to the story. It's better for it, but he's still a little surprised with how…strange the dreams became. He couldn't explain why it went that way, it was just where the story went and Weyer seemed to explain it well enough. That was why he didn't change it. _

_He looked up as his readers entered into his study. They looked happy, probably because they had just had dinner. It was his placatory gift for taking so long with the chapter. They seemed to have no problem with it as they took their seats and looked at him anxiously._

_"Evening. This chapter gets a little heated. Also, this is creepier than last chapter, but not as creepy as the others in my opinion. You may think differently." Xonze interlaced his fingers and bent them out until they cracked. _

_"We're getting awfully close to the end of this story, so if you've made it this far, don't give up now."_

_His readers nodded and he nodded back at them. "Well, I'm off to talk to the vampires about their abductions of the local town girls. Hopefully the meeting won't bite." He chuckled but stopped when no one else laughed. "Right then, tough crowd. Well, I wish you all a fair night and I shall see you tomorrow." _

* * *

><p>Chapter 9<p>

**And Shot Darling Katherine**

"I'm sorry, but we don't have a Professor Weyer here." Kate and Rick were sitting in the Dean's office of Nathan Celeb's college. It didn't take long to find the place, and even less time to get the Dean to speak with them. Though, Kate didn't get very far in her questioning before Rick had to ask about Weyer.

"He said he taught Introduction to psychology or something." Kate said, uncrossing her legs and leaning forward. "He said Nathan was in his class."

The Dean, a chubby, little man with round glasses, started to go through the papers on his desk. He picked up a folder and opened it, his eyes squinted slightly as he read. "Nathan was in that course, but the Professor is a Dr. Faust." He said looking up.

"Of course it is." Rick mumbled and Kate glanced over. He closed his mouth and she turned back. He was getting better about taking a hint lately.

"Is that class going on today?"

"Yes, though it should almost be over by now." The Dean said, looking up at the clock above the door. "If you want to talk to Dr. Faust I'm sure he won't mind."

"Thank you." Kate said and stood. She turned to Rick, nodded her head toward the door and he followed her out. In the hall he came up beside her.

"Do you think it's him?"

Kate shrugged. "It's a pretty good guess, don't you think? He has been at the crime scene, he does know the vic and he's been playing games with us. If he's there and it's the guy we've been seeing them I'm arresting him."

"Yeah, you'd probably have a better chance arresting smoke."

"He's not a ghost, Castle."

Rick moved a bit in front of her and she had to stop. "I'm not saying his is, but he's got some kind of mojo going on. I mean, he's disappeared twice on us, he keeps appearing in our dreams, which aren't exactly friendly. He's not normal. Actually he's anything but normal."

"I'll give you that, but he is just a guy." Kate said tilting her head at him. She wasn't about to let him know how much she agreed with him at that moment. She was beginning to wonder if she might really be dealing with a ghost, though the idea still sounded absurd to her.

"I dunno..."

"Then lets go and see." She said and headed out of the Administration building and toward the other end of campus, Rick in tow behind her. The rain had let up slightly since they had gone inside, and Kate was really hoping that this would be the end of it.

They reached the psyche building just as it was letting out. Kate made a hole through the crowd, gently directing college kids away with a skill that made it so that most didn't even seem to notice. It was something she had picked up in her own college days. God forbid if you actually try to push your way through, it was a good way to land on your ass and get trampled.

Rick got lost halfway through and Kate stopped and looked around. The crowd was thinning, but Rick wasn't there. She cursed and pinched her arm just to make sure she didn't somehow slip into another dream. It hurt, so she guessed she hadn't. "Castle?"

She saw him coming up the steps, appearing out of a crowd of girls. His clothes a little wrinkled and he smiled sheepishly at her.

"Don't tell me-"

"No. A couple of kids recognized me and jumped me for my autograph." Rick said, cutting her off and she gave him a disbelieving look.

"Sure, Castle, sure. Let's go."

Rick grumbled something that she didn't quite catch and together they went down the hall, using the map the Dean have given them to find their way. Dr. Faust was at the other end of the building, tucked away in a back corner. When they reached the classroom it was dark. The shades were drawn and no one looked to be inside. Kate was starting to hate the darkness.

"Are we going in?" Rick asked. She mulled the question over, not sure if she really wanted to. Finally she knocked on the door. It wasn't latched and the door slowly creaked open from the force of her knock. The light from the hall spilled into the room, a square of ever-growing yellow.

"Dr. Faust?" Kate called stepping into the darkness, her hand at her side just in case she had to pull her pistol. There was no answer, just the small whisper of fans somewhere in the room and the rain falling outside in a steady pitter-patter. She could feel the small breeze from a fan brush against her face and turned toward it.

The fan was on the desk and using the light from the hall she was able to reach out and turn it off.

"Kate?" She turned to see where Rick was and almost ran into him. "Sorry, it's like a moonless night in here."

"Yeah, I don't see anyone, let's go back into the hall." She said and began for the door. She had made it halfway when the door slammed shut from a strong wind that pushed past her. She gave a small gasp, and Rick gave an even louder one.

There was a sound of flint on metal and then the acridly smell of smoke tickled Kate's nose. She knew who it was before she even saw him. Weyer, Dr. Faust, the Umbrella Man, or whatever his name was. He was sitting on the desk, his feet swinging as he puffed on his cigarette. An ambient, hazy light played out behind him.

"Richard. Katherine. Nice to see you again, we sure are running into each other a lot." Weyer said, smoke pouring from his mouth as he talked. He reached up and pulled his hat off, sitting it on his knee. "To be honest, I really thought you two would have figured it out by now. No offense meant, of course, but really... you two can be so dense for all your deductive abilities."

Kate pulled her gun and had a sudden flash back to the dream she had in the elevator. She swallowed hard, pulled out her flash light and went searching for Rick with it. She found him a few feet away watching Weyer as well.

"Faust Weyer, you're under arrest." Kate said, turning the gun at him. He smiled the same smile as before.

"What did I tell you about that gun, Katherine? What happens if I pull one and shoot Rick here just because you're pointing that thing at me."

"You wouldn't have the chance to get it out of your waist band or where ever you kept it." Kate said, taking a step forward. Three spot lights seemed to turn on at that moment, lighting up Weyer, Kate and Rick.

"So you admit that loosing him would hurt you." Weyer said and took another pull on his cigarette. He dropped down off the desk and Kate's finger squeezed just a little bit more. "Let's switch parties, huh?" He said and he pointed his umbrella at Kate and then at Rick and the next thing Kate realized she was no longer holding a gun. "There, that's better."

Kate turned her eyes to Rick. He had the gun at his side and was looking at it like he had never seen one before. He began to raise it at Weyer when something grabbed him from behind and Kate felt her stomach drop. It was her that was behind him, but she was nude and looked to be dead.

"No, no, Ricky, none of that." She heard her voice talk and licked her dry lips.

"Now Rick, what would you do if I took my own gun and shot darling Katherine here." Weyer asked and Kate saw him pull a gun from his pocket and he pointed it her. It was an old style revolver and he began to click back the hammer.

"I'd kill you." Rick said in a voice that surprised Kate. It was calm, sure of itself. Dangerous. "Not with the gun, no I'd slowly kill you."

"So I could feel what you were feeling?" He asked smiling brightly. "Good, then I guess all is not lost." Weyer trained the gun on Rick.

"Let's ask the question again, Katherine. Let's say I shoot him right now. Him and the dead you. Would you care? Would it hurt you?"

Kate swallowed hard and looked over to Rick. The dead her was all over him. Her hand was inside his pants and she seemed to be hanging off him, her lips against his shoulder. She was laughing.

"You don't like seeing that, do you?" Weyer asked and took a step toward her. "Knowing that some other woman is with him. Hurts, doesn't it? When something like that is thrown in your face."

Kate just nodded, her lips in a deep frown. She wished she had her pistol just then so she could shoot Weyer and get this all over.

"Yes, I thought so. Yet, you never moved ahead. Hmm." He turned and looked into the other corner of the room. "Richard, come out and say hello to Katherine."

Kate gasped as she felt an arm wrap around her shoulders and draw her back. She swung out with a leg, connected with something, but who ever was holding her didn't even flinch a muscle in their arm.

"That's no way to say hello, Katie." It was Rick's voice at her ear again. She took a shuttering breath as she felt his other hand fumble with her belt and her waist band. It wasn't tough and she felt his fingers touching her, skin on skin.

"Let's me go, Castle." She said, her voice deep and harsh as she tried to keep her breathing in check.

"I-I'm not doing anything, Kate!" Rick called, she could see him across from her. He struggled to get the dead Kate off, but he didn't seem be having much success. The Dead Kate seemed to be having way to much fun with her hands at the moment.

"Not you, him." She threw her head back, pointing to dead Rick as his fingers slid against her and he laughed. Kate gritted her teeth and tried to get free, shifting her weight from side to side which just made where his hand was worse. She gritted her teeth, tried to elbow him but his grip never loosened.

Weyer came to stand in the middle of them, smoking his cigarette like he didn't have a care in the world. Kate could see his eyes shifting from her, to Rick and then back. He made a tutting sound and dropped the cigarette to the floor, stamped it out.

"Stop it you two." He said and Kate felt the hand stop, but it didn't leave her pants. She saw her dead twin stop whatever she was doing to Rick. "Such sexual frustration from the both of you."

Kate knew he wasn't talking about their dead counterparts. She swore and wiggled and she could see Rick doing the same, but dead Kate was probably as strong as real Kate, if not more so. Dead Rick certainly was.

She felt suddenly bad for him as dead Kate was almost strangling him with one of her arms around his neck. "You do know that these two that are holding you are products from your own thoughts, correct? They are manifestations of how you feel, but uninhabited. Allowed to express the rawness of the emotion. Everything they've said, you've thought, felt or saw. I must say, I didn't expect them to go as far as they did, but you two are so very unpredictable."

"What the hell are you talking about?" Kate said and dead Rick applied pressure to her shoulders.

"You're killing each other." Weyer said, pulling out his pack of cigarettes. "Killing each because you both are cowards. It's sickening to see two promising people hurt themselves like you do." He lit the cigarette and talked with it in his mouth, the white stick bouncing up and down.

"When I first met you two I saw it. I don't know what to say, but I've always been a romantic at heart so I thought I would help you. It's sad that you two are really so dense." He walked over to Kate and dropped his head so that they were eye to eye. "You're the worse offender here, my darling Detective. You realized your feelings and then hid them away. Richard did the same, but after many times of being told never. You had no such excuse. He was willing, sure he was with Gina, but you were with Demming and then Josh before he even got back. You blamed him then, but he didn't have a chance then either. You push him away for almost any infraction, not because of what he did, but because you know how you feel. You understand it, and you were the one that kept him away."

Kate bit her lip to keep from saying anything, but she knew he could tell what she was thinking. She had to hide her feelings from Rick so that they could work together again. She could settle for that, and she did so.

Weyer stood and walked over to Rick and she could hear him talking. "You, Richard, you are just a childish man. I understand why you are, but even knowing that I do not excuse you for giving up so easily. You want her, I know that, and she wants you... you when you act like the good man that we all know you are and can be. When you can be serious when it's called for and not act like someone kicked you whenever she talks to another man. You don't get the privilege of being hurt when you stop trying." Weyer sighed out smoke and Rick coughed on it.

"Just who the hell are you?" Rick asked and Weyer walked back to the desk. Kate felt a stray finger brush against her and she sucked in air sharply.

"Sorry," dead Rick said in her ear.

"I can't really tell either of you. And Richard, you do that again to her we'll have a problem. That goes for you two Katherine." He said pointing to each of their counterparts in turn. Both gave a small whimper, sounding a bit like dogs.

"I don't really have a name per se, I choose Faust Weyer as I knew you would pick up on it, Richard." He smiled in Rick's direction. "I've kept myself busy over the past couple hundred years, but I've never come across two people like you. You act like an ass to her and she acts like she hates you. You both miss that you're pining for each other. It's fascinating but as I said, heart breaking as well." Weyer coughed deeply for a moment.

"I honestly don't know what else I can do for you two. You've seen the truth I think, thats what these two were made for. You saw it already but you were afraid to admit it, these two brought that to the forefront." He blew air out his lips and chuckled. "I guess there isn't really anything more to say for now. Maybe when you two aren't so worried about a case this will all make more sense. I don't know." He bent down in front of Kate, his hands on his knees.

"Dollface, I'm going to give you a little hint on this murder to move you two a long. Check out the dorms, specifically room 535. You'll find a young man there that is part of my class and was grouped with Mr. Celeb. I assigned their groups, it was the boy in that room and a girl who had a thing for Nathan. Their assignment was a paper on fear." Weyer stood up, snubbed out his cigarette on the table and then brushed off his pants.

"Richard, Katherine? Let them go." The hands disappeared from Kate's pants and her shoulders and she stumbled to her knees before standing up and looking behind her. Nothing but darkness was there. She turned around to see Rick standing slowly and adjusting his pants, frowning heavily. "I'll see you two soon, I think, but I'll try to keep those other two out of it. I tried to this time, but... well, like I said, so much sexual frustration between you both." Weyer gave them both a small wave and walked into the darkness, whistling an unfamiliar tune and spinning his umbrella.

Rick ran over to her, his hands touching her arms and he looked to her with worry in his face. "All right?" He asked and Kate nodded, keeping her gaze on where Weyer had disappeared to.

"You?" She turned to look at him, her voice shaking slightly.

"If you're all right then so am I." He said and dropped his hands from her. "Let's get out of here, huh?"

"Sounds like a good idea to me." Kate said and went to the door, pushed it open and stood in the hall waiting for Rick. The light felt good somehow after the room. Rick seemed right about Weyer, it was like trying to arrest smoke. She didn't believe in the supernatural, but she had to admit, for her own sanity, that something weird was going on. It felt so real in there and yet she knew it wasn't. She knew it was all in her head, or most of it was.

"So, do we listen to him? Do we check out 535?" Rick asked as he moved to stand in front of her, leaning against the wall. His clothes looked even more wrinkled now. She had done that, or at least a part of her did, just like a part of him had touched her. Or was it the other way around?

"What choice do we have? We don't have any other leads at the moment. I don't like it either, but we should probably go and see."

"Okay." Rick said and she started down the hall and he followed. He stopped after a few steps and she turned to see why. He was frowning at her and then at the floor and she canted her head slightly.

"Castle?"

"Just want to say... erm, sorry for back there."

"What?"

"For what dead me was doing." She smiled slightly and shook her head.

"If it's like he said then I was doing it to myself."

"That's kinda k-"

"Say it, Castle, and I swear to god, you'll wish the dead me had ripped out your heart."

"Right... sorry. I'll try-yeah. Shutting up."


	10. Wait, What Do You Mean?

**A/N:**

_Xonze could barely keep his eyes open as he stared at his laptop. The meeting with the vampires seemed to have sucked the life out of him. He finished editing the story and his Readers showed up right on time. _

_He forced a smile and yawned. He blinked at them a few times before he spoke, his voice tired and raspy. "Evening, my friends. For once I can say that nothing scary happens in this chapter. It's all Caskett… which is a creepy enough word." His Readers all smiled, some even jumped in their seat and Xonze couldn't help but laugh._

_"This chapter does a lot. It solves the mystery of who killed Nathan, and Rick and Kate talk. There isn't any new information on Umbrella man, but he'll be making one last appearance in the last chapter." Xonze closed his laptop and laid back in his chair. He brought a hand to his forehead and rubbed it. _

_"Next up is the halloween party, and I think you'll all enjoy what happens during that."_

* * *

><p>Chapter 10<p>

**Wait, What Do You Mean?**

There were two people in the interrogation room. Kate and Rick were standing in the observation room watching the girl and guy interact. They were quick to blame each other back in the dorms as soon as Kate announced that she was a detective, and even in the car ride back to the station they were screaming at each other like an old married couple.

"So, how do you want to do this?" Rick asked, still watching. The guy was up now, screaming and pointing at the girl who just gave him the finger.

"Same as always, Castle. Get them to confess." She picked up a folder from the table and went around him and to the door. She paused just outside, tapping her fingers against the folder and gave him a curious look. "Are you coming or what?"

Rick smiled and rushed forward, following her into the next room. As soon as Kate had opened the door the two started shouting at the top of their voices, pointing fingers at each other.

"Quiet!" Kate said over them and even Rick couldn't help but flinch. She threw the folder down on the table and kicked out her chair before sitting down. Rick fell into the chair beside her.

The two looked at Kate and then at Rick, their eyes wide. Rick guessed neither had really been in trouble before and weren't sure what to do about it.

"All right, tell me what happened." Kate said opening her folder up and taking out a pen. Both started talking at the same time, their voices rising and melding together.

"Hey! One at a time. Jason. Go." Kate said, pointing the pen at the guy.

Jason turned away from the girl and held his hands out. "I don't know what to tell you, he was like that when I got there. Jess was already there with him so she must've done it."

"You god damn liar!"

"If you don't knock it off I'm just going to walk out of here and recommend the maximum to the DA." Kate said, placing a hand to her forehead and rubbing it. The kids were pushing it.

"But he's lying. He was there with Nathan. They were trying some experiment with real fear or something. For our paper."

"You're paper on fear for Dr. Fraust?" Rick asked. Jess nodded.

"Yeah, we were writing it, but these two dumbasses wanted to write about it from experience or something. I wasn't even there when it happened." She reached over and smacked the back of Jason's head. He went to get up but Kate's voice stopped him.

"Do that again and I'll add battery to whatever charges I give you."

"Sorry." Jess said, but glared over.

"Is what she said true, Jason?"

"No."

"Why don't I believe you? Her story makes a lot more sense."

"Yeah, because she was there before me. She saw what happened."

"Then what happened?" Rick asked.

Jason sighed and looked over to Jess who seemed about to rip his head off. "It was Nathan's idea."

"Sure it was." Jess said.

"He had some fear of being buried alive and wanted to experience it or something so we decided to head to the graveyard and dig a plot. I told him he was crazy but he was bent on doing it."

"So, it was Nathan's idea to bury himself alive? I have a hard time believing that, Jason." Kate said, leaning back in her chair. "You know what I think, you threaten him, you both did. Or maybe you over powered him."

"Or tricked him." Rick said. Kate pointed over with a nod.

"That sounds likely. So maybe you three were at the gravesite, maybe it was his idea to dig it and be put in the coffin, but I don't think he expected you to actually bury him alive. Did he?"

"Yes, he did, it was his idea." Jason said.

"Really? Then why did you leave him? That bell you tied to his wrist must've been going crazy as he was clawing at the lid."

"She's right, doesn't make a lot of sense when you think about it." Rick said.

"You two wanted him out of the way didn't you? So you could be together."

"What-no." Jess said and Jason shook his head along with her.

"Nathan was a goofball, he'd never be with a girl like Jess." Jason said.

"But he was, and that made you angry, didn't it? That a goofball like him was with her while you couldn't get any play." Rick said, smiling. "Then he told you about his idea, how it'd be the perfect ending to the paper. Pure fear written right after experiencing it. Except when you saw him get in that coffin and Jess wasn't around you thought it was your chance to get him out of the way."

"You don't know what you're talking about man, I didn't do it."

"Jason... did you-"

Jason ran a hand through his hair. Rick could feel his leg shaking under the table. "I didn't mean for him to get killed. I just wanted to scare him a bit. Have some fun so you could see how much of a wuss he really was." He licked his lips and took a sharp breath. "So you would dump him and get with me."

"You bastard." Jess said and was about to swing at him when Kate reached across and stopped her.

"Remember what I said."

The girl nodded and Rick and Kate both stood. Kate took Jess out into the hall and had the uniform that was standing by the door take her out. Rick saw Kate smile slightly when the Captain came out of the observation room.

"What is wrong with kids these days?" He said shaking his head.

"I blame Teletubbies." Rick said, his face serious for a moment and Montgomery chuckled.

"Yeah, maybe. Good work you two. You got through this case pretty fast."

"We had some help." Kate said frowning and Montgomery just shrugged.

"Either way, well done." He shook their hands and patted Kate's shoulder as he headed back to his office. Kate was almost beaming and Rick couldn't help but smile at her happiness.

"Nice work, Detective." He said and she looked over to him, trying to bring the smile under control.

"Yeah, well, we both did nice work."

Rick nodded and followed her back to her desk. He sat down in his chair as Kate began the process of filing charges.

He couldn't get what Weyer said out of his head. That they were killing each other. That he wasn't trying anymore. He guessed he had stopped trying and actually pulled pretty far back from her since she got with Josh. He couldn't say exactly why, but if he had to guess he'd say it was because he was afraid of another Demming. That she would throw him aside. She didn't though, not really.

She was actually more flirty when he came back, but once Josh was made known her flirting turned almost mean at times, and she didn't seem to see it. Weyer was right, he had given up and if that was the case he didn't get to feel bad. Could he feel scared? Because he was starting to get a nervous feeling in the pit of his stomach as he began to say something that he didn't really think out.

"Kate?"

"Mmm?"

"How about we go out?" He said, his eyebrows raised at her and he smiled. She dropped her pen and turned to look him, disbelief and shock playing on her face. Her mouth opened and then closed.

"Castle, I'm still with-"

"I know, I didn't say a date because I knew you wouldn't agree. I want us to go out and talk. Consider it a..." He squinted his eyes as he searched for the right phrase. "A victory dinner."

"What exactly do you want to talk about?"

"What Weyer was saying."

Kate brought her bottom lip under her teeth and bit down, her eyes studying.

"What do you say?" Rick asked and Kate dropped her eyes to the floor for a moment and then looked back up.

"When?"

"Now? You don't have a date tonight and neither do I."

"All-All right," she said and she sounded almost nervous as a smile went across her lips. "Just...just let me finish up some of this paperwork."

"Of course," Rick said and stood up. "I'll get you some coffee."

A beautiful October night was laid out before them as they stepped out of the precinct. They were walking shoulder to shoulder, Kate laughing at a joke that Rick had just made and Rick couldn't help but feel that this would be what it felt like to be with her. They had gone to Remy's a hundred times, but this time felt a little different to Rick. This dinner could change a lot of things, or at least bring something to light and he wasn't sure how ready he was for that. Then there was also that Kate was still with Josh.

He couldn't answer for how her and Josh were getting along, but Gina and him were on rocky ground, had been for a while. The miscommunication that damaged their marriage had reared it's ugly head. He tried to make it work though, but he couldn't say why he tried to so hard. He guessed it was because he didn't want to be alone when Kate had someone. It didn't matter though, a week ago they finally decided to just be friends... well publisher and author. Friends was a stretch no matter how he looked at it.

He was starting to see what Weyer, in his own sick way, was trying to get at.

Rick opened the door for Kate and followed her in. They went up to the counter and found Remy was working that night and he greeted them with a wide smile and a flirty comment to Kate. She laughed, shot back a sarcastic remark that made Remy give a roar of laughter.

"You know I can't resist a beautiful lady. Rick, I don't see how you work with her." Remy wiped his hand on a towel as he talked.

"Lord knows it's trying sometimes." Rick said and got a punch to the shoulder from Kate. "See?"

Remy laughed. "So what can I get you two? Working late again?"

"Nah, victory dinner." Rick said and Remy grinned.

"Caught another one of those bastard, eh?" He pulled off his trucker hat to show a bright bald spot. "My hats off to ya. And for making the city a little bit safe, I'll give you half off."

"We appreciate it, Remy." Kate said.

"Not at all dear, here or to go?"

"Here." Rick said as Kate looked over him. Remy gave a nod and disappeared without taking their order. Then again, they both had the same thing every time, so Rick guessed he remembered.

Fifteen minutes later they were sitting in the back corner of the shop, munching on french fries and burgers. Rick had paid while Kate was filling her drink. When she came back and realized he had paid for her as well she glared at him, which he could deal with. He just hoped she wasn't planning on killing him later.

The conversation was light for the most part as they ate, but as they began to finish Rick steered it toward what he really wanted to talk about.

"So, we've had a strange couple of days." Rick said sipping at his shake.

"That's a mild way of putting it."

"Yeah," Rick said, his voice going soft and Kate smirked.

"What is it, Rick? What do you want to talk about?"

He wasn't sure where to begin and now, facing her, he found he wasn't sure he wanted to. If she shot him down it would just be awkward working with her. If she didn't and they did somehow get together, what was going to happen if they broke up? It would destroy their entire dynamic.

Coward.

The word sounded like someone had shouted it in his ear and he jerked in his seat, looking behind him.

"You all right?"

"Fine," Rick said turning back around and taking a deep breath. "Kate, you know I like you right?"

"I like you sometimes too," Kate said smiling but it fell away after a second. "Wait, what do you mean?"

"You were there with Weyer, you heard what he said, and what he said was true for me. I did give up, but I shouldn't have. And now, I'm taking a leap." Rick smirked and leaned back into his chair, wiping a hand over his face. "Christ, I can't believe how nervous I feel."

"Rick, what exactly are you getting at?"

"I like you, I may even love you. You just didn't seem interest so I didn't know what to do. With Demming I was completely thrown because my own stupidity made me think you'd always be around to banter with me. It took him for me to realized that I cared about you. I couldn't take the pain of you pushing me away and being with him."

"I'm sorr-"

"Let me get this out, Kate. I don't know if I'll be able to do it again." He said taking a deep breath and looking at her, begging with his look that she would let him speak. She gave a nod, her eyes dancing over him.

"I know you're still probably mad about me not coming back right away. I wanted to, I really did but I was afraid that things had changed. That you had changed. I didn't think you wanted me around anymore.

"I was planning on coming back of course, just to at least to say hello, but I kept finding reasons to not do that. The book, Alexis... books that I hadn't read yet. I honestly didn't think you'd actually care that I was gone."

"You were wrong, Rick."

"I know that now, but I didn't then. I didn't mean to hurt you."

Kate frowned and turned her gaze out the window. She brought her lips in against her teeth before turning back to him. "I know you didn't. I didn't mean to push you away."

Rick sighed. "I'm not exactly sure why I stayed with Gina all this time, I think most of it was because you were with Josh. Once I knew that I fought to keep it alive, but it died like it did last time. We broke up a week ago." He said and pushed the memory away as soon as it came. "How long were you and Josh together?"

"I met him in a bookstore near the end of August." Kate said, she looked slightly surprised and Rick wasn't sure why.

"And you broke up with Demming...?"

"The night you left." She said slowly and Rick felt his eyes snap open and his jaw fall.

"What?" He asked and Kate nodded. "Why- what... why didn't you tell me?"

"I was going to until Gina walked in and you two walked out."

"So... dead Kate was right."

Kate grimaced. "Can we not bring those two up?"

"Sorry." Rick said and shook his head before stealing a fry from Kate which earned a slap on his hand. "I can't believe you didn't tell me."

"I can't believe you got back with your ex-wife." She said back in the same tone.

"Kate... I want to give us a shot. I get the feeling I'm too late, but I'm asking you out, seriously. Do you want to go with me to a real dinner?"

She stared at him for a long moment and Rick could almost see her mind working over what he said. Finally her mouth opened. "Rick... I'm with Josh right now."

"Right..." Rick dropped his head slightly, his stomach feeling like someone had dropped hot lead into it and was pouring water over it. "Like I said, I had a feeling I was too late."

"But," Kate said smiling slightly and Rick was kind of annoyed by it. "Things haven't been going that well lately."

"Really?"

"Yeah," Kate said. "I haven't had my heart in it since you came back, you know? I think he realized it. It was why he kept showing up because he wanted to see you. To see what it was about you."

"What do you mean?"

"He knew I was into someone else too, I think. He guessed it was you."

"So? It's a date?"

"We'll see." She said smiling and picked up his milkshake and took a long sip from it, smiling at the surprised look on his face.

"Oh come on, I stole one french fry and I get slapped, but you're drinking half the shake." Rick whined playfully and Kate laughed, placing a hand to her mouth as she tried to swallow the shake before it came out of her nose.

"Serves you right."

"Shut up." She said laughing fully now and Rick joined her.

"You're still coming to my Halloween party, aren't you?"

"I said I would be." Kate said, starting to gather up the trash that was on their table. "Why, don't want me to now?"

"Of course I want you to, but you need a costume and it's tomorrow night."

"I still have a day."

"And a night," Rick said waggling his eyebrows. "Let's go looking together."

"I dunno, me trying on costumes for you..."

"Would be a dream come true." Rick said smirking and she threw her last fry at him which hit him in the face. "Kidding! I was kidding."

"I can find one on my own, so don't worry. I even have one in mind and I think you'll like it."

"Sexy nurse?" He said and clamped a hand over his mouth. "Sorry... I'm trying here."

"It's all right, Rick. It's what I've come to expect from you." She smiled. "Besides, it wouldn't be much fun if it all just disappeared, now would it?" She stood up and he followed her, throwing their trash into the waste bin on their way out.

The fall air was crisp and cool and they both shivered slightly in their jackets as they stood for a moment on the sidewalk, just looking out at the city. The towers of brick and concrete surrounded them, their windows yellow and white jewels in the darkness. It was kind of nice to just stand and look around at the world for a moment.

"I guess this is goodnight." Rick said and Kate nodded.

"Yeah, thanks for dinner."

"Anytime," He said and Kate turned and walked away. Rick watched her go for a moment before heading in the opposite direction. He had made it about five steps before he felt someone tap him on the shoulder. He turned around to see who it was and came face to face with Kate. Her eyes looked over him for a moment then she threw her arms around his neck and pulled him into a kiss.


	11. Nick and Nora

**A/N: **Okay, well this is where we end the story. I want to thank all of you that stuck it out and thanks to all those that reviewed, I appreciate it. I hope you got a little creeped out at times but still had fun. I figured I'd end this on a very light note so I had some fun with this chapter. The beginning half of this story has been pretty dark so ending it a bit lightly feels right, a reward for staying with me.

As mentioned in the beginning I do have a sequel to this that was written for this past Halloween. I'll be posting it in a week or two, once some other projects are out of the way for me. So again, thank-you! And I'll see you all again soon.

* * *

><p>Chapter 11<p>

**Nick and Nora**

The party was in full swing when Kate found herself standing outside of Rick's apartment. She could hear the music blaring, the bass thumping through the door and the walls. She began to wonder how no one complained, but knowing Rick most of the building was probably in there. He didn't seem to be able to not invite someone.

She felt a little stupid as she stood there. She was not one for dressing up in a costume, to act like someone else. In her job she had to act, she had to play a character at times, but this was for fun, and she didn't find it that much fun.

That wasn't entirely true though, she enjoyed looking for a costume, she enjoyed getting dressed up. It was showing up in front of everyone wearing the costume that was making her pause at the door.

Wearing it in front of Rick.

She sighed and looked down to herself. It wasn't a sexy nurse costume, that was for sure. It was sexy though, in that old 1930's way that she had always kind of enjoyed. She had a favorite book from then too, and it was a character from that book that she was dressed up as, or rather more like the character from the movie. She was wearing a dress, loose fitting at the shoulders, with frills near the bottom. Her hair was curled and pulled back, mimicking the movie as best she could. In the mirror she thought she pulled it off quite well.

She reached out and knocked on the door, her breath catching for merely a moment as she heard the door unlatch. On the other side, dressed in the same period clothing as she had chosen, was Rick. He had a fedora on, a nice suit and a striped tie with a handkerchief in his jacket pocket. She could see the hair under the hat was slicked back and he had a thin, fake mustache on. He smiled broadly at her and then it slowly fell to an amused expression.

"Nora." He said, trying not to laugh and Kate felt her cheeks redden slightly as she smiled back.

"Nick." She said, her voice soft and she shook her head. Either he was psychic, this was a coincidence, or he found out what she picked last night. It didn't matter, she decided to look at it as a meant to be type of thing. A reaffirming that they did think a bit too much a like at times.

"Darling, do come in." Rick said, and held out his hand which Kate took. He pulled her into the room, putting his arm around hers and leading her into the crowd.

Many turned to see who had just came to the party, some smiling at her, and some watching in surprise. Mostly the people from the precinct that Rick had invited. She was sure she was going to hear about it all on Monday.

Esposito, dressed as a cowboy looked at her and then at Rick, confusion playing on his face. "What's with the forties kick?"

"Ah, Mr. Esposito, I'd like you to meet my wife, Nora Charles." Rick said, standing slightly away from Kate. "Nora, this is Mr. Esposito."

"Okay, whats going on?" Ryan came up beside Esposito, his steam-punk outfit standing out from everything else. He was looking at them over a pair of brass colored, round rimmed glasses. "Wait... The Thin Man?"

Kate smiled despite herself. "Well, at least one of you reads."

"Read? The Thin Man is a book? I just saw the movie."

Kate sighed shaking her head and looked over to Rick. "Darling, it's so sad how few people read these days."

Rick patted her hand. "I know, I know, but we can't all have your smarts and your beauty, now can we?"

"You sure don't."

"There is the rapier wit I love, maybe a drink to take the edge off? Yes, I need a drink I think. Be back in a bit." He moved to her and kissed her cheek before taking off in the direction of the refreshment table. Kate tried to act like the kiss never happened, but she found it quite hard.

"It's like watching the movies again." Ryan said laughing and Kate joined in. Esposito stood there looking between them for a moment before taking a drink from his beer. He pointed the tip at Kate after he swallowed.

"So, you two just put this together?" Esposito asked.

Kate shook her head. "I just thought of this last night, I had no idea Rick was going to be dressed up like this."

"Yeah, sure you didn't." Ryan said, and Kate glared at him. "What was with the kiss then?"

"What kiss?" Kate's heart jumped slightly. There was no way they knew she had kissed him. Unless Rick-she turned her glare over to Rick who was striking up a conversation with a Mummy and sipping from a cocktail glass.

"The kiss on the cheek? Are you even paying attention to anything anymore?"

"Nah, bro, she's too caught up in Castle."

"Esposito, what the hell are you suppose to be? A character from Brokeback Mountain?" Kate said, trying to get the attention off of her self.

"Wow, low blow there, Beckett." Kate cocked an eyebrow and shrugged. "No, I'm just a normal cowboy, well maybe a sexy cowboy."

"Boy is right." Kate said and Rick came back over, handed her a glass.

"Didn't know what you'd want so I took a guess." He said and she took a sip. It was good, but she couldn't say exactly what it was and she smiled at him.

"Good guess."

"Yes, well I'm bound to get something right, sweetheart."

"I think I've had about as much banter as I can take." Ryan said, and moved back over to where Jenny stood near the stereo. She was dressed like a dead bride, talking to a few other creatures of the night.

Esposito left them as well heading to get another beer. Kate watched them both go and then turn to Rick, surprised at how handsome he really looked in his costume. She could still feel eyes on her from all over the room and she was sure most were asking themselves if she and Rick were together, or just good friends. She found herself not caring which they chose.

"You look amazing, by the way." Rick said and then took a gulp from his drink.

"You don't look half bad yourself, though the mustache should probably go." She said pointing in a circle around his lips.

"Gotta look the part. So what made you choose Nora?" They turned around, leaning against one the tables and looking out at the crowded room.

"I loved the Thin Man book, and the movies. Seemed like the perfect costume. Why Nick?"

"Don't you think I'm a bit like him?"

"He is charming, handsome, smart and so very funny." She paused, looked him over. "No, I don't see it."

"O-ouch." Rick said placing a hand to his heart. "You certainly have Nora down quite well." He placed his drink down on the table behind him and held out his hand to her. She looked down to it, wondering what he was meaning with it. "Care to dance?"

"This isn't exactly the kind of music I like to dance to, Castle." Kate said, the Monster Mash song belting out of speakers. Rick nodded, smiled and pulled a remote out of his suit pants. He clicked it once and the song changed to a more slow, haunting type of song. He reached out and took her hand, pulling her into the middle of the floor where a few other couples were starting to dance as well.

Kate allowed him to led her, his hand on her waist, hers on his side. They were close, closer than they had been in a long time. The last time they had danced it was so uncomfortable for her, here, dressed like a married couple from a book she found she didn't mind. Or maybe it was that she had finally allowed herself to admit that she liked him more than just a friend.

"Think anymore about that dinner date I proposed?" Rick asked, pulling back slightly so he could see her face. She pursed her lips and then brought them in tight.

"You sure you really want to do this?" She asked after a moment. Her eyes went searching around the room. She found Lanie next to Esposito, they were talking, but Lanie was watching her carefully. Kate smiled at her and Lanie smiled back, raising her glass.

"Yes, positive. Aren't you?"

"I want to be, but I'm just not sure about us." Kate said and Rick nodded.

"It might be a bit of a leap, but I really want this to work with us. I haven't wanted something so badly before."

She pulled back this time, looking skeptical at him. "Are you making this up as you go?"

"No, I'm being serious. Like I said back at dinner last night, I think I love you. Actually that's not true. I do love you."

"How do you know?"

"All the songs make sense?" He asked, and she laughed.

"No, seriously."

Rick shrugged, dipped her slightly, locking his eyes with her's for a moment before bringing her back to standing. "I can't stop thinking about you. I want to see you always happy and when you're not it kills me a little. I enjoy putting a smile on your face when I can." He said all this very quickly, the words jumbling together but Kate understood every one.

Kate rested her head on his shoulder, and they continued to dance slowly. He said he loved her, but she wasn't sure she could say the same. She felt it, she knew she did, but she just couldn't bring herself to say the words. The ones that she had wanted to hear from him for months and he had finally said them but she couldn't.

"Rick..." She began but stopped when the music turned off for a second as the song changed. This song was still slow, but more of a love song than the last. Kate pulled away from Rick and looked around the room, finding the entire area sitting in darkness except for around them. "Are you kidding?" She said slowly, looking up to Rick.

His expression was tight, his eyes searching out the darkness and he pulled her closer, his grip surprisingly strong. She could feel the muscles in his arms beginning to tremble.

"Nick and Nora." A voice said and Kate felt her body tense. "I must say, you two never fail to surprise. Wonderful choice."

"What do you want now, Weyer?" Rick called, his voice callous. There was a chuckle from the darkness and then a flame lit up the corner showing Weyer standing with his hat on his head and lighting a cigarette. The lighter clicked closed and he walked forward into the light.

"I just wanted to tell you how proud I am of you two. It took a lot of doing, and some pushing but it finally worked out, didn't it?" He took a long drag and then pointed at Kate with the cigarette. "He confessed his love, won't you do the same?"

"I-" Kate began looking between Weyer and Rick.

"Come along now, darling. Just say the words, you know you want to."

She looked up to Rick now. She hated feeling pressured but at the same time she knew he was right. Rick needed to hear the words as much as she did. He had taken a leap, he had been brave, so why couldn't she be the same?

"I love you too, Rick." She said slowly, tasting each word as it left her mouth. Each a struggle to say because each had a bit of fear packaged with it. Yet once they were out she felt like the world had lifted from her. The grin Rick had on his face helped some too.

"See? Not so hard." Weyer said and they both looked over to him. "Now you two kids play nice, okay? I'll be keeping an eye on you and checking in from time to. I really wish I could stay, Rick, but as I wasn't even planning on being here I'm running late for other appointments." Weyer was looking down at his watch. He tapped it a few times before grinning and looking back. "Be good to each other, Mr and Mrs Charles."

Weyer laughed gently and Rick and Kate both watched as he flicked the cigarette toward them. It land, still smoking, a few feet away from them and they both stared at it until Weyer's voice came from the darkness again.

"You know, I would like to see a kiss between you two before I go. You know, just to validate that all my hard work actually amounted to something."

Kate turned back to Rick and frowned. She wasn't a fan of kissing on cue, and yet she didn't mind the idea. Rick didn't seem to either and was already bending toward her. Their lips met and Kate closed her eyes, just enjoying the sensation of his lips against hers. She slowly began to move her lips with his, sucking on his bottom lip before kissing him fully. He seemed to pick up on what she was doing and returned it, making her smile against his lips.

After a few moments they stopped, pulling away from each other and grinning. Kate took a deep breath and opened her eyes to see that they were no longer alone. Everyone was looking at them. Silence, except for the music, laid heavily in the room. Kate felt her stomach drop, her cheeks burn and she swallowed hard. She hadn't even thought about this and she let her eyes wander over the other guests.

A clapping sound came from somewhere in the back. It was slow but building. Others joined in and it built until it overshadowed the music. Shouts and whistles came from everyone. Kate thought she heard Lanie shout something over the noise to the effect of: 'It's about damn time!'

Kate dropped her forehead to Rick's chest laughing, her eyes staring down at their feet. She took a deep breath as she felt Rick's chin touch the top of her head and she turned her eyes to look toward where Weyer had been.

Sitting on the floor, still giving out a wisp of smoke, was the cigarette that Weyer had left behind. One last reminder of the Umbrella Man.


End file.
